


The Crocker Chronicles

by TRDowden



Category: Haven (TV)
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-16
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2019-03-19 06:21:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 60,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13698636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TRDowden/pseuds/TRDowden
Summary: Duke Crocker died to help end the Troubles, and now his troubles are over. Or at least, that's what he thinks.





	1. (After)Life in the Fast Lane

**The Crocker Chronicles**  
**Pilot**  
**"(After)Life In The Fast Lane"**

 

_** 10 November ** _

  
_So…the Troubles are over, done forever. You'd think I'd be happy about that. And I suppose I am; save for the fact that I died. But I went out on my terms--not Croatoan's, not the Guard's, nobody's, just Duke Crocker's._

  
_I won't go into the gory details of what it was like to die, much less at the hands of my best friend. (Yes, Nathan Wuornos was my best friend. There, I said it. Deal with it)._

_Nate did what he had to do. I would have told him that, if he'd have ever stopped beating himself up long enough about having to kill me. So I had to make do with Squatch. He deserved to be happy too; he'd lost as much as I had to the Troubles. And Nathan did get his own happy ending too, after a fashion. Paige will fall in love with him. No matter who she is in the end, she and Nate are destined for one another. And baby James too. Nathan Wuornos is tailor-made for fatherhood. Lord knows I wasn't. But I guess that’s one legacy I don’t mind leaving for my little girl—a clean slate._

  
_Once I'd led Nate back to Audrey, I was off to whatever fate awaited me after I left Sasquatch. I even thought that maybe I'd even get to be with my brown-eyed girl once more. Up ahead of me, I could remember seeing there was a bright white light. Paradise, here I come. Or so I thought._

  
_Imagine my surprise when what I thought would be Heaven turned out to be Vincent Teagues and Agent Howard in the Barn! But in retrospect, I don't know why I was surprised. It's never been quite that easy for me, is it? Why start now because I'm dead?_

  
_Vince tells me that while he is Controller, the Barn also needs a guardian, someone to ensure that Troubles don't escape it. Apparently, being an inter-dimensional Barn controller must be a kind of on-the-job-training sort of thing. He doesn't want any of the little dears to escape. And neither he nor Howard quite trusts Croatoan to not try to make a break for it at some point, and I get that. So they need some help._

  
_Howard is Vince's adviser. He can't control the Barn, but he can help to advise Vince, and help the guardian. They tell me they needed someone who knows Troubles. What to look for, how to spot them when they manifest in people, and how to deal with them. Someone uniquely suited to the job, and they had just the person in mind for it._

  
_Guess who they picked._

* * *

 

Duke stood stiffly with an angry expression, looking at Vince Teagues and Agent Howard.

  
The last he knew, he’d left Dwight Hendrickson outside the Armory after taking Nathan there to save Audrey from Croatoan’s influence. Duke figured he’d done his bit to end the Troubles; and had seen the last of Haven, the Barn, and Howard and Vince. And now here he was in the Barn once more.

  
"I'm done with the Troubles!" he said, his tone heated. "I gave everything I had to this town, even my life! What more do you two want from me?"

  
"I know that you did," Vince answered kindly. "And that sacrifice is what helped to end the Troubles for good in Haven. Because you gave your life to let others live in peace."

  
"Which is why I suggested he bring you here," Howard spoke.

  
"I thought that Vince was the controller of the Barn now," Duke replied, gauging the other man.

  
"He is; I am here as a sort of adviser," Howard told him.

  
"Then why am I here and not sipping margaritas on the beach with Jennifer in the afterlife?" Duke replied.

  
"Jennifer has moved on to the next plane of existence. If we could bring the two of you together, we would. But we cannot," Vince replied, his tone apologetic.

  
"So I get to stay behind as karmic punishment?" Duke mumbled. "Nice one, guys."

  
"This is not a punishment meted out for you, Duke," Vince stated. "Unfortunately, there is still work left unfinished."

  
"I am not going to kill people to take their Troubles anymore!" Duke shouted at them.

  
"And you won't have to. Your Trouble is gone, along with everyone else's," Howard assured him. "You're unique, Duke; you were specially chosen for this assignment."

  
"What assignment?”

  
"You're going to be a sort of guardian," Vince stated. "You will ensure that no Troubles can escape from here. Or be restarted."

  
"So I'll just be some ghostly security guard doomed to float around in here for the rest of eternity?"

  
"No. You're going to be restored to life again."

  
"Restored? Like reincarnated?"

  
"After a fashion," Howard said. "The Duke Crocker you were is no more. The body you were born with is dead."

  
"I know it is, I was still in it when it kicked off," Duke snarled. "Next thing I knew I'm standing there watching Nathan and Audrey--" he broke off, remembering seeing his friends' pain and grief, feeling Nathan's crushing guilt as he smothered the life out of him. Experiencing Audrey's anguish that there had been no other way out for him; silently watching Gloria feeling his wrists for a pulse that wasn't there, her tears when she'd told Nathan he could let go of him, that he was dead.

  
"I know that it was painful for you," Vince said sincerely, seeing Duke's expression. "If Nathan could have done it differently, he would have; but there was no more time. But I sensed you were still there,” he continued. “That even after death, you couldn't bear to leave those you loved. You still wanted to fight to end the Troubles. And that is why we sent you back to Dwight."

  
"Wait-- _you_ sent me?" Duke questioned. "I don't remember that. I-I remember going to Dwight, to help him get Nate to Audrey, but--not how I got there," he trailed off, thinking. "So how am I supposed to help if I don't have a body anymore?"

  
"You will have one," Howard put in. "Do you remember William's--helpers?"

  
"You mean that creepy little guy and the giant that turned into little black balls? Yeah, I remember them," Duke retorted.

  
"They were aether constructs--which is what your new body will be built from," Howard explained.

  
"I don't get it," Duke puzzled. "I was at Croatoan's beck and call because of all the aether in my body. I don't want that again, so if that's what you have in mind for me, you can just toss me back out into the universe and I'll take my chances."

  
"No, no," Vince scolded gently. "That is another reason we chose you, Duke, was because of the relationship you had with the aether in your body."

  
"What relationship? It made me sick and turned me and my family into killing machines," Duke retorted. "That’s not exactly what I would call a relationship."

  
"It also bonded with you on a molecular level-much as it did Mara when Croatoan used it to treat her illness when she was a child," Howard told him. "Whether or not you know it, aether is sentient. It sensed your sorrow and your anger, as it did Mara's when she controlled it."

  
“Focus on intent,” Duke said softly, remembering when Mara had walked him through how to release a Trouble so that he wouldn’t die.

  
"Yes. But the aether also experienced love through you," Vince added. "It is capable of learning. Troubles can change and mutate through the years, through intermarriages with different Troubles over generations, we know that. But as Charlotte discovered, aether can also be positively charged, as yours was done. You overrode the impulse that every other Crocker of your line had, to kill to experience the high of the blood rush, to absorb the aether into your bodies. You changed the aether you held in your body through love, Duke. The love you had for Nathan and Audrey; for Haven. Your last act proved that.”

  
"No, Audrey overrode it," Duke mumbled. "I'd have killed everybody in that police station, because I was being controlled by Croatoan through the aether in my body."

  
"And she could not have done so if you were not still in there fighting," Howard said sternly. "She may have made a small hole; but you fought your way through it."

  
"Oh-kay," Duke answered cautiously. "And now you want me to be an aether-man controlled by somebody else? No thanks. So if it's all the same to you gents, you can just put me back in the Great Beyond."

  
"No one will control you, Duke," Vince answered severely. "As though anyone ever could for long," he smiled. "We want you to help us. While yes, the Barn will keep the Troubles away, it is an ever-changing structure, and aether is always developing, seeping into the Void. There are others out there who would use it for ill intent. That is where you come in."

  
"Because you can control it, you can feel when it is being ill-used," Howard put in. "It can grant immense power, yes, but you yourself know its side-effects."

  
"Troubles," Duke said, understanding. "The Troubles were side-effects from the aether being used on people?"

  
"That is precisely so. Your job will be to detect any aether that might escape the Void; or if it is being used on people," Howard said. "Your race--or your former race of beings--are not quite as advanced as ours, which is why the Troubles developed in the first place, from Mara and William's inflicting them upon people."

  
"That was so long ago. People aren't quite as much in the dark ages now as they were back then," Duke pointed out.

  
Howard looked at him. "Tell me, Duke--exactly how did people in Haven react when faced with a situation that defied explanation? Were they rational and understanding? Or did they commit people to asylums? Or denounce the Troubled from the pulpit? Or exploit one family's curse to stop another?" he asked, and Duke fell silent.

  
"Touché. So now what?" he said at length. "You stick me in some machine and make me forget who I was like you did Audrey?"

  
"No. It is imperative that you remember," Vince told him. "We want you to remember your past. If that was what we intended to do with you, we would not be having this conversation."

  
"This should make for some interesting conversations back in Haven," Duke commented. "Oh, look, there’s Crocker, back from the dead. People will take one look at me and lose their minds that the Troubles must be back."

  
"That is the one down side to your new life," Vince said. "You cannot go back to Haven. You can never return to Haven; the life you had as Duke Crocker there is finished. You will be reborn, yes, but it will be elsewhere."

  
"Like where, for instance?"

  
"Any where we have a need to send you," Howard said. "You can transport yourself as aether does; able to move from your world to my former one. You cannot be hurt by physical means, because your body is made from aether."

  
"So say if somebody shoots me, I won't die?" Duke asked, brightening. “Well, die again,” he corrected.

  
"No, your body would simply close the wound. But you cannot let other people know that," Howard warned. "For all appearances, you will be human-you’ll breathe, you’ll have a heartbeat and pulse.”

  
“If I were to get a cut or something it’s not going to be gushing black goo, is it?” Duke asked. “As you just pointed out, being different does tend to panic the natives.”

  
“No, it would appear to be blood. But I would not advise putting yourself into a situation to where people could medically examine you." He frowned. “We cannot force you into this decision, Duke; you are a living soul, and free to choose,” he continued. “If you wish us to return you so that you may cross over, we can do so.”

  
Duke thought for a long moment, and then looked at Vince.

  
“Why didn’t you choose Dave for this?” he asked.

  
Vince looked sad, and then replied “I could not. I would have; but Dave had chosen to move on, even before I became the Controller.” He smiled slightly. “I can’t blame him for that.”

  
“David did not have the connection to aether that you possess,” Howard spoke. “So the question is, Duke Crocker, do you want to spend eternity wondering if the Troubles might come again? Or do you want to prevent what happened to you and Haven from ever happening again?”

  
“Be a shame if you were to have died for nothing,” Vince remarked, glancing at the wall as though there were something there.

  
“Low blow, Vince,” Duke retorted. “If I choose to stay and help you,” he said slowly. “Do I still have the option of crossing over someday or am I going to be stuck forever with you two?”

  
“I think you know the answer to that question, Duke,” Vince said, smiling. “Or you wouldn’t have asked it. Very well,” he finished, and the Barn faded away in a flash of light.

* * *

 

“Hey,” Duke heard a little voice saying, and felt a poke in his ribs.

  
He opened his eyes, and found himself looking at a little girl, no more than six or seven years old. He could feel he was lying on sand, and could hear the roar of surf in the background.

  
He sat up, seeing he had gone from an all-black wardrobe to a form of his original wardrobe-board shorts, camp shirt, a tank top and deck shoes.

  
“Are you okay?” she asked.

  
“Yeah, I think so,” Duke replied. “Why do you ask?”

  
“Cause you felled out of the tree,” she said. “You just appeared like magic!”

  
“Susie,” Duke heard a woman’s call, and a rather attractive woman with long brown hair and blue eyes appeared. She was wearing a sarong wrapped over a swimsuit, and she came over to them.

  
“Susie, don’t bother the man, he’s taking a nap,” she scolded.

  
“Him not napping—he felled out of the sky!” Susie chirped, and the woman shook her head.

  
“She has quite an imagination. I’m sorry,” she smiled apologetically at Duke.

  
“It’s okay,” Duke answered. He stood up, and dusted himself off. “Actually she’s sort of right—I fell out of the tree,” he went on, glancing up at it. “Thought I’d try for a coconut.”

  
“Oh, God, are you all right?” she asked, wide-eyed.

  
“None the worse for wear,” Duke grinned, and held his hand out. “Duke Crocker.”

  
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Shelley Marbury, I work at the Beachcomber,” she gestured up the hill to the little hotel. “Are you going to be working here too?”

  
“Maybe,” Duke hedged, hoping that Howard would tell him what he was supposed to be doing here.

  
Shelley smiled and nodded. “Good. Well, I’m glad you’re not seriously hurt, Mr. Crocker.”

  
“Call me Duke,” he answered.

  
“All right—Duke,” she replied. “C’mon, Suze, let’s get back so Mommy can get ready for work,” she told her daughter, tugging her along.

  
“Bye, Duke!” Susie waved.

  
Duke smiled and waved goodbye. “Bye, Susie,” he called after her, and then gasped.

  
_Susie had a black glowing handprint on her back_.

  
“Now you see why you’re here,” Agent Howard said from behind him.

  
“Somebody’s starting it all over again,” Duke answered, his face determined. “Someone wants to restart the Troubles.”


	2. Return To Sender

**The Crocker Chronicles**   
**Chapter 2**   
**"Return To Sender"**

  
_**12 November**_

  
_Well, as far as first assignments go, I could've gotten a lot worse. It's usually snowing by now in Haven, and here in Isla de Jean-Batiste, Panama, where I am currently located, it's a balmy 85. It's nice. It's beautiful, even._

  
_But I can't stop thinking about Susie with that glowing black hand print stamped on her back that only I can see. If Audrey were here, she'd see it too. But she's gone, and Nathan's back in Haven living happily ever after with the new version of her. So it's just me and Howard and Vince; three not-quite-human-anymore guys just kicking around paradise. It sounds like the premise to a comedy; but we're not here for fun. Already I've spotted four other people with the same hand print, and I've only been here a day. Somebody's been awfully busy handing out Troubles and if I don't find out who it is soon, we're going to have another Haven on our hands._

  
_I found a job fairly quick; the hotel owner, Jake, is an old beach bum who came down for a visit and stayed type. The hotel is really small, no more than 20 rooms, plus bungalows that the staff can stay in, including yours truly. I get to run one of the two fishing charter boats. My boat is named The Scarlet Lady. The Cape Rouge she ain't, but she's mine for now._

  
_It turns out that aether-me is similar to original me; I get hungry, thirsty, and tired just like I would've if I were still alive. I guess a guy that neither eats nor sleeps would tend to draw attention after a while._

  
_Vince and Howard have advised me to keep a weather eye on Susie, who lives with her mom Shelley in a bungalow not far from mine. Her Trouble hasn't activated; but as we all know, it takes emotional distress to set them off. Poor little kid doesn't know she's a walking time bomb, and unfortunately, till it triggers, I can't tell what kind of Trouble it is. Guess I'm not as tight with aether as they thought I was. But it's a learning experience for me too, guys._

* * *

 

  
"Where are we?" Duke asked Howard after Shelley and Susie had gone. He surveyed the other man's clothing. Howard had gone from a suit and tie to khakis and a loose white shirt.

  
"I would look conspicuous on the beach in my other attire," he told Duke.

  
"Are you going to be able to read my mind all the time, because that's just creepy," Duke retorted.

  
"Not all the time," Howard stated. "I can only do that when I am in close proximity to you. As I said, you are an independent soul—we don't have control over you."

  
"Well, that's a relief," Duke grumbled.

  
"And in answer to your earlier question, we are in Isla de Jean Batiste, Panama," Howard informed him.

  
Duke gazed around them.

  
"I thought this was somewhere near the Caribbean," he replied. "So what do I do now?"

  
"Let's walk," Howard gestured, and he and Duke started off down a path that led through the tropical foliage.

  
"As you just saw, you can see who has been Troubled," Howard began. "Can you see who's doing it?"

  
Duke closed his eyes a moment, and then shook his head.

  
"No, sorry," he muttered.

  
"Just as I thought; Susan Marbury's Trouble was issued some time ago," Howard replied. "If it had been done within the last day or two, you most likely could tell who had inflicted it; that is, unless they are blocking you."

  
"Why would they block me? Nobody knows I exist anymore, right?" Duke asked. "As far as anyone knows, Duke Crocker died and was buried at sea," he went on, thinking on the obituary he'd looked up in _The Haven Herald,_ now temporarily being run by a couple of Guard members.

  
_Must have been the happiest day of their lives to put my obit in there,_ he thought to himself. _The last of the Crockers buys the farm_.

  
"As I said, there are others with ill intent bent on using aether to be destructive," Howard said. "This is an ideal testing ground," he continued, glancing around them. "It's an island with a small population, somewhat insulated against the outside world."

  
"To start out with small Troubles that could look like behavioral disorders or tropical diseases," Duke guessed, and then wondered how he'd known that.

  
"All part of your programming," Howard said, and Duke glared at him.

  
"Please—even if you can read what's going through my mind, will you at least wait until I ask it?" he asked, exasperated. "What else am I 'programmed' to do?"

  
"It isn't like what you think, Duke," Howard said a little gentler. "We gave you the knowledge that we've gained about aether, so that you will know what to do. We are not going to make the same mistakes as we did with Mara. You're going in with your eyes wide open. And as far as programming goes, we made it so that you were as much like your old self as you ever were," he went on. "You will still feel human urges—hunger, thirst, sleep."

  
Duke deliberately kept any other 'human' urges out of his mind, and then asked "Why?"

  
"Because you will need to appear as normal as possible," Howard told him. "People will begin to ask questions if you're not seen eating or needing rest."

  
"That sounds reasonable," Duke ceded. "So what do I do now?"

  
"First, you need to try to settle in with the people," Howard said. "I would take up Miss Marbury's suggestion about employment at the hotel. I happen to know that the owner is looking for someone to run a charter boat for fishing excursions. You should fill that niche nicely."

  
"You want me to be a charter boat captain?" Duke asked.

  
"It will also enable you to get closer to Miss Marbury and to Susan. Troubles are triggered by emotional distress."

  
"Well, can't I just pull the aether out of her before her Trouble starts?" Duke questioned. "It would be easier."

  
"Unfortunately, we have no idea what kind of effect it would have on the child. As you're—inexperienced, and she's very young, we are going to have to wait until the Trouble manifests."

  
"It takes emotional trauma to trigger a Trouble," Duke said. "I'm not traumatizing a little kid just so I can take her Trouble away."

  
"You won't have to," Howard answered. "I imagine it will manifest itself soon enough. But you need to keep your eyes open. If they've Troubled a child, they won't have any compunction about Troubling anyone else."

  
"William once Troubled a four-month-old baby," Duke murmured. "I had to—kill his dad to take it away." He gasped, remembering. "You don't think it could be him, do you?" he asked, wide-eyed.

  
"As far as we know, William is still back in my world," Howard said. "But that does not necessarily rule him out either. He could have drafted others to go along with his plans."

  
"That guy's a psycho," Duke growled. "Because of what he did to baby Aaron, I had to get my own Trouble back so I could take his away," he finished, crowding away painful memories of that terrible day at when he'd had to kill Gloria's stepson; that horrible day at the lighthouse when Jennifer died.

  
Howard put a hand on his shoulder, as if he understood.

  
"That is also part of the reason we chose you, Duke," he said, his tone compassionate. "You understand the importance of not letting this happen to anyone else. Because you know what it is to lose people you love; or to take away someone else's life to save another's."

  
"I just hope I don't let you guys down," Duke exhaled. "You think you can count on me not to fail?"

  
"Oh, I think so," Howard answered, walking back towards the beach.

  
"And why is that?" Duke called after him.

  
"You won't fail. You're too stubborn to give up, Mr. Crocker," Howard answered, and vanished.

  
Duke grinned slightly, and then headed back to the beach, and toward The Beachcomber Hotel.

* * *

  
A few hours later, he secured himself in a small bungalow as the newest member of the hotel staff.

  
Jake McGraw had reminded him so much of an older version of himself it was pathetic. He'd eagerly hired him on as a charter boat captain, his interview consisting of letting Duke take the boat out with him, to see how he handled her, watching as Duke listened to her motor, inspecting the boat from stem to stern, reading over the maintenance manifests.

  
"By God, you've been around a boat or two," Jake admired.

  
"I grew up on boats," Duke replied. "I had one myself for a while."

  
"What'd ya have?"

  
"A one-ten," Duke replied.

  
"That's a mighty big boat for a young feller," Jake remarked. "What'd you do?"

  
"This and that," Duke hedged, and Jake grinned.

  
"I done a bit of 'this and that' when I was a younger man myself," he grinned. "What was her name?"

  
"The Ca—"he began, and then realized if Jake went back and looked up _The Cape Rouge_ , he'd find out that her owner had died. That wouldn't look good, so Duke did what he did best—he thought fast on his feet. " _The Cicero_ ," he fibbed, using the name of the one-ten that had gone down in a Nor'easter off the coast of Maine.

  
"What happened to her?" Jake questioned.

  
"She went down in a Nor'easter last winter," Duke said truthfully. "The owners cut me loose and I've been adrift ever since, working this job and that."

  
"They held you responsible?" Jake asked, looking him over critically.

  
"I told them that hull wasn't going to hold up to a big storm, but what did I know," Duke replied. _That was true enough,_ he thought. _The Cicero's_ hull had been breached because of her owners' skinflint ways and improper maintenance; it was nothing short of a miracle that the entire crew had managed to escape with their lives.

  
"That's what comes from _bankers_ ownin' boats instead a' sailors," Jake commiserated. "Well, if you're looking to drop anchor for a while, you're welcome here," he told him. "I don't think I could find a better Cap'n than I could in you. You've looked _Scarlet_ over like she was your own child," he went on, and stuck his hand out. "The job's yours if you want it, Duke."

  
"I want it, thank you," Duke beamed, and shook hands with the older man, glancing around the boat. _The Scarlet Lady_ was older and smaller, and a little run-down, but he'd work her over soon enough. _The Cape Rouge_ she wasn't, but she'd be home for now.

* * *

  
He put away the things he'd purchased in town, thinking on the people he'd encountered. They were all friendly enough in that islander way, and had made him feel welcome.

  
But there had been that lady at the grocery store in front of him, with that burning hand print peeking out from under her sundress. There was the old man with one on his arm as he sat playing chess in the shade of the trees. There was also the woman who ran the local bakery, and the young man who'd come out of the surf with his board, the print glowing brightly on his chest like a neon sign.

  
_Five altogether_ , Duke thought. _I've counted five people who've been Troubled and I've only been here a day,_ he reflected as he settled into the tub with four fingers of Gentleman Jack. _Five people who don't have any idea of what's coming at them; or how many more there'll be tomorrow. I have to find out who's doing this._

  
Duke hoped that the new day would bring along some answers as he lay down and closed his eyes. Tomorrow he had a charter—a bachelor party for a bunch of snowbirds, Jake had called them. And maybe somewhere along the way, he'd start finding some answers.


	3. You Can't Go Home Again (But Sometimes, Home Comes To You)

**The Crocker Chronicles**   
**Chapter 3**   
**"You Can't Go Home Again**   
**(But Sometimes Home Comes To You)"**

 

_** 14 November ** _

  
_So here I am, all set for my first charter at the new job. I get to captain a boat, I'm living on an island in the tropics, made new friends in Jake and Shelley, my afterlife couldn't be going better, right?_

  
_I couldn't have been more wrong if I'd tried._

  
_Let me put it to you this way: Thomas Wolfe once said you can't go home again. Well, sometimes, home comes to you._

* * *

 

Duke emerged from his bungalow, his hair still damp from the shower, and shut the door behind him.

  
He caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned to see Shelley and Susie come from their own bungalow.

  
"Morning, Duke!" Shelley waved to him. She was dressed in her housekeeper's uniform, and was walking Susie to where the bus picked up the local children.

  
"Hi Duke!" Susie waved wearily. She looked tired, and he worried that Susie's Trouble was about to rear its ugly head.

  
"Good morning, Shelley. Hi, Suzie-Q," he greeted, picking her up.

  
_So far, Susie's Trouble is still idling in neutral,_ he noted. _My worry is for how much longer?_ He could sense it was taking hold in her small form, and he tested it gently by placing his hand against the mark on her back, feeling its resistance, and Susie grimaced.

  
"What's the matter?" he asked.

  
"My tummy hurts again," Susie whimpered.

  
"Oh, honey," Shelley said, taking her in her arms, her face worried, her hand checking Susie's forehead. "She is a little warm," she murmured.

  
"Is she sick?" Duke asked.

  
"She had a tummy ache last night, said it kept hurting off and on," Shelley replied. "It might be a bug that's going around school."

  
"Maybe you should stay home with her, huh?" Duke suggested.

  
"I would but I can't," Shelley protested. "I can get Mrs. Sanchez to come watch her, but she lives clear over on the other side of the island. Frannie's out of town so it's just Nancy and I working today. And we have that group of guys checking in today at the hotel. Bachelor party," she rolled her eyes. "We have to get their rooms ready; they're due to check in at noon."

  
"Oh, boy," Duke grinned. "I think Jake said something yesterday about they wanted to go fishing too. Look, why don't I watch Susie for a bit until you can get Mrs. Sanchez to come over? I don't imagine my charter is going to want to go fishing the minute they get here."

  
"If you're sure you don't mind," Shelley hedged.

  
"Not at all," Duke replied cheerfully. "Don't make her go to school if she doesn't feel well. Would you like that?" he asked Susie. "I stay with you till Mrs. Sanchez comes over?"

  
"Yes," Susie answered, her little face pained. "My tummy really hurts, Mommy."

  
"All right," Shelley exhaled. She walked back to her bungalow, and unlocked the door, ushering Duke inside. The bungalow was simply decorated, but was homey, and Duke noticed the wedding portrait of Shelley and a young man in a military uniform that hung on the wall over the entertainment unit.

  
"That's Danny, Susie's daddy," Shelley said, seeing Duke looking at the picture. "He died.”

  
"I'm sorry," Duke answered sincerely. "My wife died. I know how it is."

  
Shelley nodded, and set Susie down on the couch and went to fetch a thermometer, placing it in Susie's ear. After a moment, it beeped, and Shelley peered at it.

  
Ninety-nine-point-seven," she said. "Yep, you're staying home today, young lady."

  
Duke made Susie a pallet on the couch with a blanket and two stuffed animals while Shelley got her into her nightie, and turned on cartoons.

  
Susie grimaced as Shelley got out the children's fever medicine, but she took it, and smiled when Shelley gave her a chocolate to take away the taste of the medicine.

  
"I want you to be a good girl for Mr. Duke, okay?" Shelley ordered, and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back before you know it."

  
"Kay, Mommy," Susie answered.

  
"Duke, you have my number. If she gets worse, call me," Shelley told him, gathering her purse. "And thanks again. Mrs. Sanchez should be here in a couple of hours."

  
"It's no trouble," Duke said, wincing inwardly at his own choice of words. "If her fever goes up, I will call you on the double."

  
"Please do. And Duke--thanks," she finished, and pecked his cheek gently, her hand on his.

  
Duke covered her hand with his.

  
"Don't worry," he assured her. "She'll be as right as rain in no time."

  
Shelley departed, and Duke settled into a chair, watching Suzie closely. Her fever was increasing, and he feared her Trouble was about to activate.

  
“Susie,” Duke asked cautiously, thinking back on all the times he’d seen Audrey talk someone down from their Trouble, “did anything happen with you or Mommy last night?”

  
“N-no,” Susie mumbled, and Duke’s Lie antennae went up. He’d told enough lies as a kid to put off CPS to know when one was fibbing to an adult, and Susie was most definitely fibbing.

  
“Susie, does somebody hurt Mommy?” he asked softly. He’d heard that Shelley had a boyfriend, Mark Mathis, one of the lawn maintenance guys; and that he had a jealous streak a mile long.

  
“Mark yelled at Mommy last night,” she quavered.

  
_If he’s hurting Shelley or this kid, I’ll break both his hands,_ Duke thought, and then glanced at Susie. Her hair was soaked with sweat, and he scooped her up, taking her into the bathroom.

  
“Sure be nice if I had the family journal right about now,” he muttered as he ran the cold water in the tub.

  
“I’m so hot, Duke,” Susie whimpered.

  
“I know you are, honey. I’m going to try to make it better, okay?” he assured her. She was burning hot, and he put her into the tub.

  
To his horror, when the little girl made contact with the water, it actually steamed and hissed as it covered over her skin.

  
“Vince? Howard? I could really use you guys right now!” he called out to no one.

  
He fumbled with the thermometer, taking Susie’s temperature once more, horrified when it read  _ERROR_ , because it could no longer record her temperature. If Duke had to hazard a guess, he would estimate Susie's body temperature was somewhere between three and four hundred degrees.

  
“Duke?” he heard Howard’s voice from the door.

  
“In here!” he called.

  
Howard knelt down alongside the tub.

  
“Who’re you?” Susie groaned.

  
“This is Dr. Howard,” Duke fibbed. “He’s gonna help me make you all better,” he went on. “Right?” he said, looking at Howard.

  
“Yes,” Howard answered.

  
“What is this?” Duke questioned.

  
“It’s a Super Nova Trouble,” Howard said grimly. “She’ll continue to get hotter and hotter—“

  
“Until she blows,” Duke finished. “Not happening on my watch,” he finished, and placed his hand against her head. She was so hot he felt his fingers burning, but he persevered, focusing on drawing the aether out of her body, using his own to cool Susie’s body back down.

  
“Hurry, Duke,” Howard urged. Susie had lost consciousness by now, and the water was steaming hot from the heat her small body was giving off. Howard cradled Susie, keeping her head out of the water.

  
“I’m trying…it’s resisting me,” Duke gasped. He pushed harder, and finally felt the aether leaving Susie, rushing back towards him as Howard sprayed Susie down with the shower hose.

  
Duke opened his eyes, revealing they were solid black.

  
“That will happen; you’re reacting to the unfamiliar aether in your body,” Howard instructed. “It will pass in a few moments.”

  
True to his word, Duke’s eyes returned to normal, and Susie blinked her eyes, looking up at him and then down at herself.

  
“I takeded a bath with my nightie on!” she scolded him. “You’re silly, Mr. Duke!”

  
“Yes, I’m silly,” Duke sighed with relief. “How do you feel?”

 

  
“My tummy stopped hurting,” Susie smiled. “Can I watch _Kung Fu Panda_ again?”

  
“Sure,” Duke smiled, and helped her out of the tub, wrapping her up in a big towel.

  
“I’m glad to see that you’re better, Susie,” Howard told her.

  
“Thank you for helping me, Doctor Howard,” she piped.

  
“You’re very welcome,” Howard replied, and smiled. “Now go get on some dry clothes, and Mr. Duke and I will make you some soup.”

  
“I like Spaghetti-O’s,” Susie called as she dripped into her room.

  
“Spaghetti-O’s it is,” Duke answered, and sagged against the tub.

  
“That was closer than I ever want to get again,” he said in a low voice. “She was right there on the edge.”

  
“But you beat it,” Howard told him. “Susan will be fine now. You eliminated her Trouble.”

  
“Now I have to fix Shelley’s trouble with her boyfriend,” Duke grumbled.

  
“We are not here to meddle in domestic affairs,” Howard told him, and Duke whirled on him.

  
“That ‘domestic affair’ is probably what set that kid’s Trouble off in the first place!” Duke argued his voice low. “I might’ve been something of a cad in my previous existence, but I drew the line at hitting women.”

  
There was a knock at the door, and an older Hispanic woman put her head inside as Duke appeared in the hallway.

  
“Are you Duke?” she asked. “I’m Mrs. Sanchez. How is Susie doing?”

  
“Yes, I’m Duke. This is Dr. Howard,” he introduced.

  
“ _Senora_ ,” Howard bowed, and Mrs. Sanchez looked worried.

  
“Is Susie all right?” she questioned, her face fearful.

  
“Susie is just fine,” Howard assured her. “We gave her some medicine, and a cool bath, and it’s brought her fever down. She should be able to go back to school tomorrow.”

  
“Oh, Thank God,” Mrs. Sanchez crossed herself. “I was so worried about her.”

  
“Mrs. Sanchez,” Duke began cautiously. “Do you know anything about this Mark character Shelley’s been seeing?”

  
“Enough to know that I don’t like him,” she answered swiftly. “Jake does not like him either.” She smiled at him. “She should see someone like you, Mr. Duke.”

  
_Just what I needed, another Gloria_ , Duke thought, and felt a pang thinking on the older woman who’d been more of a mother to him than his own had ever been.

  
“Well, we’ll see,” Duke hedged. “I really have to get going,” he told her, rolling down his shirt sleeves. “The bathroom’s kind of a mess.”

  
Mrs. Sanchez waved him off. “I got it—I used to be a housekeeper at the hotel too,” she chuckled. “Don’t keep Jake’s customer waiting, that’s his biggest pet peeve.”

  
“Was mine too,” Duke mumbled, thinking of when he would scold the staff at The Grey Gull for leaving guests hanging in the doorway waiting for a table.

  
“Beg pardon?” Mrs. Sanchez said.

  
“I was just saying I need to get going,” Duke answered. “Thank you again for coming.”

 

Mrs. Sanchez waved off the praise. “She’s such an angel, I don’t mind watching her. Go take your people fishing. And thank you again, Doctor.”

  
“My pleasure,” Howard answered, and he and Duke showed themselves out.

  
Once out of view of the windows, Duke balled up his hand, focusing intently. Black goo began to ooze between his fingers, growing thicker and larger until it formed itself into a silver-dollar-sized ball. He gave it to Howard, who pocketed it.

  
“I can’t keep that in my body,” Duke told him, panting slightly.

  
Howard nodded agreement.

  
“This isn’t like your aether, is it?” he questioned, and Duke shook his head.

  
“No, it isn’t,” he replied. “That stuff,” he pointed to the orb. “That stuff is—toxic. It’s designed to make people ill.” He looked to Howard. “Who wants to inflict this kind of potential damage?”

  
“That is for you to find out, Duke,” Howard told him.

  
Duke felt his phone buzz, and saw it was Jake.

  
“Hey, Duke, where are ya?” he bellowed over the phone. “Did Maricella arrive at Shelley’s house yet?”

  
“Yes, she just got here,” Duke answered, presuming that Maricella was Mrs. Sanchez.

  
“Well, yer charter’s waiting,” Jake scolded.

  
“Oh, yeah, the bachelor party,” Duke answered. “A bunch of drunken frat boys?”

  
“Not hardly—these guys don’t look the type, and two of them are cops anyhow,” Jake chuckled.

  
Duke could hear voices in the background, and for a moment, one of them sounded familiar.

  
“All right, tell them I’m on the way,” Duke told him.

  
“Cap’n says he’s coming,” Jake called out.

  
“Well, tell him to hurry up!” Duke heard a voice bellow near the phone, and felt all the blood drain to his feet. “I’m dying to hook a bluegill!”

  
“You heard the man, hurry it up,” Jake finished and hung up.

  
Duke looked aghast at Howard. _No, it can’t be_ , he thought. _Not here._

  
“Anything the matter?” Howard questioned, but before Duke could answer, Shelley pulled up in her car, and got out.

  
“How’s Susie? And who is this?” she asked, looking Howard over.

  
“Dr. Byron Howard,” Howard introduced himself. “I’m an—old acquaintance of Duke’s, and he asked me to stop by and look her over.”

  
“Is anything wrong?” Shelley asked.

  
“No, no. She just has a mild stomach bug. The fever’s gone, and she’s feeling much better.”

  
“I’m going to go see,” Shelley said, and laid her housekeeper’s clipboard down on the chair that was on the porch.

  
Duke glanced at it, and a series of names written on it caught his eye; _Hendrickson, D., Room 230. Bannerman, S., Room 233. McHugh, L., Room 231. And one final name: Wuornos, N., Room 234._

  
“We are over 2600 miles from Maine,” Duke said weakly. “There are over 7,000 islands in the Caribbean—and they pick this island for a vacation—and my boat for a fishing charter!”

  
Howard stood quiet for a moment.

  
“It would seem you have a situation,” he remarked.

  
_Situation, he says. More like a four-alarm fire._


	4. Second Time Around

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _  
_**Chapter 4** _  
_**"Second Time Around"** _

 

_**15 November** _

  
_There's an old saying, when the going gets tough, the tough get going, which I guess is why Howard beat it back to the Armory on the double when he found out that my fishing charter consists of Nathan, Sasquatch and his right-hand goon McHugh, and Stan. Nate's the honored guest of this little shindig so I guess Nate and Audrey 2.0 have decided to make it official._

  
_I went back to the Barn—Armory—whatever—to talk it over with Heckle and Jeckle, and they told me that I was going to have to deal with it on my own, which is fine. But they also told me that I couldn't tell them anything. What am I supposed to do, wear a Halloween mask? It's a 50-foot fishing boat, not the Rouge! I could hide on the Rouge, but there's nowhere to run on Scarlet._

  
_Why do I get the feeling that somewhere Fate is laughing her ass off at me?_

 

Duke went into the office.

  
"Duke, why aren't you down at the docks? That charter is waiting!" Jake burst out.

  
"Jake, I need to ask you for a huge favor," Duke began.

  
"I already gave you an advance," Jake answered.

  
"No, no, it isn't about money," Duke sighed. "Can you take that charter out? _Scarlet's_ all gassed and ready to go, it's just--I can't take those guys."

  
"Why can’t you take ‘em?" Jake asked, suspiciously, and narrowed his eyes. "You ain't wanted somewhere, are you?"

  
_Not since I kicked the bucket_ , Duke thought, but aloud he said, "No, I'm not wanted. I know these guys. We didn't--part on good terms."

  
"Does this have to do with _The Cicero_?" Jake asked a little gentler.

  
"Partly," Duke fudged. "Not that they're crooked cops, they're great guys," he added hastily. "It's just--I can't, Jake. It's really personal," he went on, his eyes bright. "I just can't take them out."

  
Jake heaved a great sigh. "All right," he said at length. "All right, I'll take 'em out. But I want some answers later on, right?" he pointed a finger at Duke. "Something just don't seem right about this. We ain't through with this conversation, savvy?"

  
"Savvy," Duke muttered. "Thanks, Jake."

  
Jake gave Duke a crooked grin. "Besides, been a while since I got to take the old gal out. It'll be fun."

  
"I'm sure it will be," Duke smiled faintly.

* * *

  
He made his way back to his bungalow, first stopping to check on Susie, who was taking a nap.

  
"Duke! I thought you were supposed to take out that charter!" Shelley said upon seeing him.

  
"I asked Jake to take them," Duke told her. "It's a long story, and I really don't want to talk about it."

  
"I understand," Shelley smiled. "Want some tea? I was about to make some."

  
"Yes, please," Duke said. "But what I really wanted to talk about was you and Mark. Susie told me he was yelling at you last night."

  
Shelley didn't answer, just turned her back to Duke. She reached up into the cabinet over the stove, and Duke caught a glimpse of finger-shaped bruises on her arms.

  
"Shelley," he blurted, going over to her. He raised her sleeve and looked at her accusingly. "He's hurting you."

  
"No, it was just a--a misunderstanding," she said.

  
"I'll show _him_ a misunderstanding," Duke answered hotly.

  
"Duke, don't," Shelley begged. "He's really tight with the local law enforcement, it won't make any difference."

  
"Oh, it won't, huh?" Duke answered. "We'll see." He patted Shelley's hand. "It's not right he hurts you," he went on gently. "That's why Susie gets tummy aches, from the stress. You don't need that guy, Shel."

  
"Duke, he'll hurt you too if you interfere," Shelley whispered, and Duke smiled tightly.

  
"I rather doubt it," he said. "You let Duke worry about Duke. I don't think you're going to have any more trouble out of Mr. Mathis after today." He kissed her forehead, and rested his own against hers, feeling her hand warm against his neck. In some ways, Shelley reminded him a lot of Jennifer, with her warm smile and caring demeanor.

  
"It hasn't been easy these last few years since Danny died," she sighed. "Susie really doesn't remember him--she was just two when he was killed."

  
"How did he die, if you don't mind my asking," Duke replied. "If it's too painful--"

  
"No, it's okay. He was killed in action in Baghdad," Shelley told him, showing Duke the box with her late husband's medals in it, including a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. "He saved four other guys," she said softly.

  
"Danny sounds like he was a brave guy."

  
"He was. Danny was--amazing," she sighed.

  
"So why are you settling for less than amazing?" Duke asked. "I don't think Danny would like to see you being smacked around."

  
Shelley put her hands over her face and began to cry, and Duke held her in his arms.

  
"I didn't mean to make you cry," he told her tenderly. "Please don't, Shelley."

  
"I've just been so afraid," Shelley wailed.

  
“Afraid? Afraid of what?” Duke questioned.

  
“I’ve been a-afraid of Mark--and of his strange friends."

  
"What friends?"

  
"I don't know them; they're new to the island," Shelley said, wiping her eyes. "One of them is a woman; blonde, pretty, blue eyes. But there's--something about her," she continued. "There’s something--not right. When Mark’s around them—it’s almost like he’s a different person,” she whispered.

  
"How do you mean?" Duke asked.

  
"When I met her, Mark had picked Susie up from school, and she and her friend happened by. She just kind of smiled down at Susie and patted her back, and she said something to her. Mark just stood there smiling at her like she couldn’t do anything wrong.”

  
"What did she say?" Duke said, feeling his heart race. _This could be who I'm looking for_.

  
"She said--" Shelley strained her memory, and then realized it. "She said, 'well, aren't you just the little firecracker."

  
Duke's face grew grim as she said it, and he realized that he'd just found who was Troubling people; the handprint on the guy's chest. The one on the old man's arm; what man would mind being touched by a beautiful woman? Duke knew first-hand what it was to be Troubled like that, and he determined that he'd better find this woman quick.

  
"I don't suppose you caught her name, did you?" he asked casually.

  
"Meredith," Shelley answered. "I don't know her last name."

  
"I don't suppose she's running around with some guy named William, is she?" Duke muttered, sipping his tea.

  
"Yes, that's her friend, how'd you know?" Shelley asked, wide-eyed, and Duke's hand froze, cup in mid-air. "That's her friend that she arrived with!"

  
" _William_?" Duke croaked. Nathan had said that William had helped him get out of the Void; and that he'd given him Charlotte's ring so that he could go home again.  
_Home to get new recruits to help him Trouble people_ , he thought. _Oh, Nate, when will you ever learn to stop being so damn trusting? You’d think knowing me all these years would have cured him of that._

Duke went back to his bungalow, and scribbled a note, sliding it under Dwight's door. He didn't want to have to do this; but he wasn't about to let this go any further.

* * *

 

  
Towards late afternoon, the fishing group returned, sun-browned and burned respectively, and went back to their rooms.

  
"Hey, somebody left you a note," McHugh pointed out to Dwight. "Maybe it was that cute housekeeper."

  
Dwight grinned, and bent down and unfolded it. It read:

 

_Squatch:_

  
_There is a situation that you need to be made aware of. Meet me this evening in the Sandpiper after closing, you and Nathan. I will try to explain everything._

  
_-D._

  
"Squatch?" McHugh read over his shoulder.

"Short for Sasquatch," Dwight answered, thinking. " _Crocker_ used to call me that. Nobody has since he died."

  
"Think it might be a family member of Duke's?" McHugh asked.

"What other family members? Nathan said he read somewhere that Duke's oldest brother died, and we know Wade's dead too, so who's left?"

  
"Vince always said Simon liked to get around--might be one more Crocker coming out of the woodwork, wanting to get his--or her--share of Duke's estate."

  
"Nothing to get--Gloria put it all in trust for Duke's daughter Jean, till she's 21," Dwight observed.

  
"You gonna go?"

  
"Yeah," Dwight said, reading the note again. "If nothing else just to find out whomever this 'D' character is."

* * *

 

The afternoon and evening seemed to drag on, and Duke paced restlessly in his bungalow, wondering what he would say when he was face-to-face with Nathan and Dwight. How would they react to seeing him again? How were they going to react to find out that the world wasn't quite as Trouble-free as they'd hoped for?

  
He knew Vince and Howard would be furious with him for meeting with them, to say the least. _But they're the ones that said, deal, so I'm dealing_ , Duke reflected.

  
Vince appeared behind him.

  
"Duke, you _cannot_ go through with this meeting!" he said sternly. "This isn't their fight anymore!"

  
"I need _help_ , Vince," Duke answered crossly. "You know, you and Howie want to sit in your ivory Armory and not lift a finger while I'm down here fighting in the trenches," he went on, growing angry now. "But then again, that’s how it always was in _Haven_ too, wasn't it? You let others in the Guard do your dirty work, letting them run rampant while people died left and right from the Troubles and you and Dave said nothing!"

  
Vince flinched at that, and then spoke.

  
"I am sorry that we didn’t tell you sooner about your—family’s legacy," he answered. "Perhaps if we had not kept our secrets for so long, things would not have spiraled so out of control."

  
"Oh, you think?" Duke retorted, and then relented. "This isn't getting us anywhere," he sighed. "I'm sorry, Vince. But this is the exact same situation. You brought me back to prevent the Troubles from ever happening again, and I'm doing my best to do the job, but dammit, Vince," he panted. "I need someone to watch my back too. Who better than the people who fought alongside us? If we can catch William and this woman, can we confine them to the Armory as well?"

  
"Absolutely," Vince smiled. "There’s plenty of room for new guests."

  
"Well, good," Duke answered. "Now all I have to do is catch them, and it's easier said than done."

  
"He is a bit slippery," Vince muttered.

  
"So was I, if you'll recall," Duke grinned. "I'll work it out. Just--let me meet with Nate and Dwight."

  
"I still think this is a mistake. But you do make a valid point." He looked Duke over critically.

  
"Perhaps we shouldn't have given you quite so much independence," he remarked, and then vanished before he could hear Duke's crude remark regarding his parentage.

* * *

 

A little after two a.m., Nathan and Dwight sat outside on the patio of the Sandpiper, the Beachcomber’s bar and grill.

  
“I can’t believe we’re sitting out here waiting on someone who left you a note,” Nathan grumbled, yawning.

  
“I’m just curious as to who would be calling me Squatch,” Dwight told him. “You know only Duke ever called me that.”

  
Nathan smiled faintly. “I remember,” he said, thinking back, and sighed deeply. “Haven hasn’t been the same without him.”

  
“Yeah, it’s been peaceful,” Dwight cracked.

  
“Well, I love you too, Squatch,” Duke spoke from the shadows, and both men jumped to their feet, eyes bulging in disbelief as Duke emerged from the shadows. Dwight was too overwhelmed to speak; Nathan looked as though he were about to faint.

  
“I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to scare you,” Duke began. “But really, is there any good way to break it someone you’re not really dead?”

  
“It’s his ghost again,” Dwight said, looking him up and down. “But you’re dressed differently now.”

  
“It’s kind of hot down here for a pea coat,” Duke cracked.

  
Nathan stretched a trembling hand out, and poked Duke in the stomach.

  
“You’re solid—you’re real,” he breathed. “Oh, God, Duke,” he said, scrambling to his feet and putting his arms around him.

  
Duke patted Nathan’s back, feeling him sobbing against his chest. He didn’t imagine things had been any easier for Nathan than it had been for him when he’d killed Wade.

He hadn’t wanted to; but he’d been left with no other choice.

  
“I’m so sorry, Duke,” he wailed. “Every night when I close my eyes, I—“

  
“Hey—it’s okay, Nathan,” Duke interrupted. “It’s all right. Come on, pull yourself together,” he told him, helping Nathan sit down again.

  
Dwight finally managed to find his voice.

  
“W-What is this?” he asked. “Are you here to take—are you gonna—“

  
“ _No_ , I am not here to take Lizzie away,” Duke stated gently but firmly as he pulled a bar stool over to join them and sat down. “She’s yours. So if you’re looking for refunds, sorry, no returns, you’re stuck with her,” Duke smiled at him, and Dwight looked immensely relieved.

  
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said, and closed Duke in his arms. “Thank you again,” he mumbled into his shoulder, and then released him. He looked at Duke, and then smacked him up the back of the head.

  
“Hey! What was that for?” Duke asked, rubbing his head.

  
“For flipping me off,” Dwight winked, and Nathan laughed out loud. It had been so long since Duke had heard him honestly laugh it surprised him; but he just grinned at him, before sobering.

  
“How this—miracle—happen?” Nathan questioned. “Or is it something else?” he sobered, glancing at Dwight.

  
“A combination of both,” Duke said. “I’m Duke; and I’m not. I did die, yes, and technically, I’m still dead.”

  
“Then how are you solid?” Dwight asked.

  
“Perhaps I’d better explain it, Duke, you’ll only make a mess of it,” Vince sighed, appearing.

  
“I was hoping you or Howard was going to step in and say something,” Duke answered.

  
“Vince! What are you doing here? Who’s watching the Armory-and Croatoan?” Dwight interrogated.

  
“The Armory is still secured, as is Croatoan. I sent Duke back to you to help Nathan find Audrey,” Vince began. “After he returned to the Armory, I gave Duke the option of staying to help, to be a guardian; and in case someone ever tried to restart the Troubles. I am now glad that I did, because I’m afraid that someone is indeed attempting to resurrect the Troubles.”

  
“So you resurrected Duke to help you fight them,” Nathan said. “How did you bring him back to life?”

  
“I’m not alive—not in the sense that you are, Nate,” Duke told him. “Look,” he gestured, standing up, allowing his body to return to its aether state, a cyclone of whirling black orbs, before he returned to himself.

  
“You’re an aether-man,” Dwight got out. “I thought aether was all bad, like those two guys that time.”

  
“Normally, aether does tend to be negatively charged,” Vince spoke. “But as Charlotte said, it can also be positively charged. When Duke died, something happened to the aether in his body. He changed it.”

  
“To be all touchy-feely about it, the aether and I became one,” Duke toned. “I’m like an aether-man, but with a difference; I have a soul. They didn’t. Aether responds to me because it’s sentient.”

  
“Aether can think,” Nathan said dubiously.

  
“Not so much think as sense—it gets its thinking done for it, usually by whoever is wielding it,” Vince explained. “Remember what Mara said? It’s all focus and intent. Think of it as drones in a beehive. Duke, however,” he sighed, glancing at him meaningfully, “thinks for himself. He is, in the literal sense, sentient aether.”

  
“I guess I am,” Duke admitted. “I wouldn’t have come to you guys at all, but Isla de Jean Batiste has a small problem,” he continued. “Somebody is handing out Troubles here; big, nasty ones. I pulled one out of a little girl today that was truly terrifying.”

  
“How old was the kid?” Dwight asked.

  
“Six. Her Trouble was designed to kill her and anyone else in her vicinity when it went off. That tells you something of the person doing it.”

  
“Sounds like William’s up to his old tricks again,” Nathan grumbled.

  
“I think he’s one of them, yes,” Duke said.

  
“One of? Who else is with him?” Dwight questioned, anxious.

  
“A woman named Meredith, blonde, blue-eyed, very pretty, according to Shelley. She’s the one who Troubled Susie, her daughter.”

  
“The little girl,” Nathan put in, and Duke nodded.

  
“How many people have been Troubled so far, or is there any way to know?” Dwight asked.

  
“I’ve counted five so far. I can see the marks on them, like Audrey could,” Duke told them. “The difference is I can pull the aether out of them before their Trouble gets too bad. The catch is I have to wait until it’s active before I can. I also think they’re using a local man named Mark Mathis to help them,” he continued. “Also part of the reason I wanted to see you guys.”

  
“I thought the Armory was to contain all that. That no more Troubles could be started,” Nathan said with an anxious look in his eyes.

  
“The Armory was designated to keep all of the Troubles that had been previously created away,” Duke said. “But aether continues to thrive in the Void. If anyone is able to access it, they can start all over again.”

  
“We are in uncharted waters here,” Vince replied gravely. “We are trying to prevent another Haven from happening.”

  
“They picked a perfect place to test new Troubles,” Dwight commented, glancing around. “A little isolated island in the Caribbean. Just like paradise.”

  
“That’s what Howard said,” Duke answered. “Now I have to figure out how to prevent it from becoming a lost paradise.”


	5. Good Times, Bad Times, You Know I've Had My Share

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 5** _   
_**"Good Times, Bad Times, You Know I've Had My Share"** _

 

_ **16 November** _

  
_After scaring Nate and Dwight out of a year's growth and explaining that it was imperative that they not tell anyone that I still existed in this realm, they agreed to help me and the Barn Bailiffs hunt for William and this mysterious Meredith woman who's accompanying him and to follow Mathis._

_They put Stan on Mathis; say what you will about him, Officer Stan Bannerman is a hell of a shadow man when it comes to following someone. (And yes, that is the voice of experience talking. Hey, I wasn’t always a good boy.)_

  
_When I came in this morning, Jake tells me that he had to rush Ernesto Diego to the hospital last night, that he'd come down with some strange ailment. Me not being a local, I ask him who Ernesto Diego is._

  
_He's sort of an island institution, Jake says, usually seen playing chess down at the park with the tourists for five bucks a game._

  
_I remember seeing the mark on the old gent playing chess and I ask Jake if he was the one who always wore the white guayabera shirt and the straw trilby and he says yes. So now I have to figure out a way to finagle my way into the hospital to get a look at him, to figure out if it's because of his Trouble, or simply that he's getting older. The latter I can't fix; but I can do something about the former. Dr. Crocker, Aetherologist Extraordinaire._

 

  
Duke went down early to the docks to finish cleaning up The Scarlet Lady. Tourist season was gearing up, and he had another charter to do today.

  
A shadow passed over him, and Duke glanced up to see Nathan standing on the dock.

  
“Hey,” Duke greeted.

  
“Hey,” Nathan answered. “Mind if I come aboard?”

  
“Suit yourself, Nate,” Duke answered, trying to keep things light.

  
Nathan boarded the boat. He looked tired, and Duke said so.

  
“I didn’t sleep much last night,” Nathan admitted. “Fact is I haven’t slept much at all the last couple of months.”

  
“What have you told Audr—I mean Paige about all this?” Duke asked.

  
“A little of it here and there,” Nathan said. “She doesn’t remember the Troubles. She doesn’t remember anything or anyone from before—not even you, Duke,” he finished.

  
“Nate,” Duke sighed, and sat down across from him. “Nate, look at me,” he ordered, and Nathan raised watery eyes.

  
“Nathan, you did what you had to do,” Duke told him. “If you hadn’t, Croatoan would have made me kill even more people and then pulled all those Troubles out me, and I would have died anyway—and so would everyone else in Haven. But when you did it—Nate, you—you and Audrey helped to change me,” he went on. “I couldn’t be here now like this if it hadn’t been for you.”

  
“Can you ever forgive me?” Nathan whispered.

  
“I did that when you grabbed hold of me,” Duke smiled faintly, and Nathan hugged him for a long moment before he let go, touching Duke’s shoulder, his arm.

  
“For an aether guy, you feel pretty real,” he murmured.

  
“I’m not used to hearing you say that,” Duke said.

  
“What?”

  
“You _feel_.”

  
Nathan gave him a shy grin.

  
“Still sounds a little strange to me sometimes too,” he admitted, and then sobered. “What happens when you stop William and the others and seal off the Void for good?” Nathan asked. “Do you just—stop existing? Or are you going to be trapped forever in the Void or the Barn?”

  
“That I don’t know,” Duke answered truthfully. “I don’t think Vince or Howard do either. Hopefully not,” Duke managed a smile. “I would like to move on eventually.”

  
“Why don’t you come back to Haven? Things are so much--” Nathan began, his voice full of hope, and Duke looked sad and shook his head.

  
“You know I can’t, Nathan,” Duke said softly. “Come on, let’s change the subject,” he continued. “Tell me about your bride-to-be. I guess congratulations are in order. You finally got around to asking her to be your wife.”

  
“Paige is great,” Nathan smiled slightly. “You never met a better mom, and she’s smart. She likes old movies, and fuzzy sweaters. She likes to paint landscapes, and she loves working with kids,” he told Duke. “She’s a schoolteacher.”

  
“She’s a schoolteacher? That’s about as unlike Audrey Parker as you could get,” Duke remarked. “However, I have met teachers who were just like cops.”

  
“That’s what she chose to be,” Nathan answered. “But Duke, no matter what she would have come back as, I’m grateful she came back at all.”

  
“Yeah, I was kind of surprised too,” Duke noted.

  
“Did you—get to see Audrey while you were there in the Barn?” Nathan asked, and again Duke shook his head.

  
“No, we didn’t meet up,” he murmured. “But I’m happy for you, Nathan, I honestly am. Wish I could be there when you two tie the knot. But I’ll be there in spirit—well, more or less,” he grinned, seeing Nathan’s skeptical look.

  
“What about the other people you saw the mark on?” Nathan said, turning back to the topic they were doing their best to avoid; the Troubles.

  
“Well, I ran into Jake this morning. The old man who had it on his arm has been admitted to the hospital with some mysterious illness that the doctors can’t identify,” Duke said meaningfully.

  
“Doctor-speak for ‘we don’t know’, or in Haven-speak ‘It’s a Trouble,” Nathan noted. “Are you going to go see him?”

  
“I’m going to try,” Duke answered. “He’s in Quarantine, so it won’t be easy. If his Trouble’s fully activated, I can get it out of him.”

  
“Kind of a variation on your old Trouble,” Nathan said.

  
“Not really. I don’t have to cut or injure the person to pull the aether from them,” Duke replied. “I do absorb it; but I can’t hold it in my body anymore for long. I render it back to its dormant state and then Howard or Vince socks it away in the Barn, never to be seen again. That’s the ideal, anyway.”

  
“How many have you done so far?” Nathan asked.

  
“Counting Susie’s? One,” Duke said, and Nathan’s face registered incredulity.

  
“You’ve only cured _one_ Trouble?” he asked.

  
“Nathan, I didn’t exist anymore until five days ago."

"Five days? Duke, you--died--months ago!"

"Time moves differently in the Barn, remember?" Duke reminded him. “I’m doing the best I can here.”

  
“I know you are,” Nathan replied, and then was quiet a moment. “You always did your best—for me and Audrey—and Haven,” he added softly.

  
“If you’re going to get all mushy again, you can get off my boat,” Duke chided affectionately, and Nathan nodded. He would have said something else, but Dwight came lumbering up the dock.

  
“Figured I’d find you two here,” he remarked. “Stan’s back; he tailed Mathis to a house on Tortoiseshell Way that’s been rented to a woman named McKay. Real estate agent said she’s a real looker, blonde, blue-eyed, dynamite figure.”

  
“Sounds like our girl,” Nathan said. “Well, Duke, as it’s your show—“

  
“Never thought I’d live long enough to hear someone say that,” Dwight chuckled.

  
“I didn’t,” Duke answered evenly.

  
“As this is Duke’s show,” Nathan pressed on, ignoring the both of them, “which do you want to do first—see this woman or go and deal with Mr. Diego at the hospital?”

  
“I don’t want to tip my hand to William and this woman until I just have to,” Duke said. “If they know we’re onto them, they might step things up.”

  
“How do you mean?” Dwight questioned.

  
“I think they’re doing this Mathis like Croatoan did me,” Duke told them, seeing their startled expressions.

  
“They’re making him into a Trouble bomb,” Dwight answered flatly. “Set him off, and the same thing that happened to Haven happens here.”

  
“I think so. Also, I don’t know what kind of Trouble Diego has; if he’s in Quarantine, that means it could be contagious,” Duke said.

  
“Like Daryl’s was,” Dwight muttered, glancing at Duke.

  
“ _Mara_ stabbed him; I just took his Trouble,” Duke grumbled. “Hopefully, it won’t come to that this time.”

  
“Duke says he doesn’t have to touch blood anymore, he can pull the Trouble-aether out of the person, leaving them cured of it,” Nathan put in. “Now we just have to figure out how to get him in to see Mr. Diego in the hospital.”

  
“Let me get hold of an old medic buddy that lives down here in the islands,” Dwight said. “It’ll take a few hours, but I’ll see what I can do to get you in the room,” he finished, and thundered back up the dock towards the hotel.

  
A trio of business types came down the dock next, heading for _The Scarlet Lady_.

  
“You Captain Crocker?” the eldest one asked.

  
“That’s me,” Duke said cheerfully. “You must be Mr. Wainwright,” he greeted, shaking hands with him. “Oh, this is my First Mate, Nathan,” he gestured at a surprised Nathan. “He’s going to be giving us a hand today. Right, Nate?”

  
“Absolutely,” Nathan answered. “Let’s catch some fish.”

  
“That’s what I like to hear said Wainwright, and the two men with nodded agreement as Duke fired up the engines and the five of them set sail for open sea.

* * *

  
A few hours later, the sun was beating down overhead. Duke stripped to the waist, Nathan doing the same as they worked together, icing down the fish the men had caught.

It felt good to just be in each other’s presence for a while, Duke noted, seeing Nathan smile and joke with the men while Wainwright fought with the rod and reel attempting to land the one he had on the line.

  
“I can’t get any movement in this shirt,” he griped. “Can you hold him while I get it off?” he asked Nathan.

  
“Sure thing,” Nathan replied he and Duke taking hold of the fishing rod while Wainwright stripped off his shirt.

  
“Nathan,” Duke gasped. “He’s got one.”

  
“He’s got one what?” Nathan questioned, squinting at Wainwright’s bare chest, and then comprehended. “He’s got a mark on him,” he finished grimly.

  
Duke nodded. “Yeah—right above his heart. Hey, um—Mr. Wainwright?” he asked.

  
“Oh, call me Clint, Duke,” Wainwright said jovially, strapping back into the harness so he could take the rod again.

  
“Okay. Clint, how do you and your guys like Jean Batiste so far? We got a good nightlife here.”

  
“So we noticed,” said one of the other guys. “We had a good time last night, that’s for sure.”

  
“Meeting any girls?” Duke grinned, trying to keep both his tone casual and Nathan calm.

  
“Aw, I’m a married man, Duke, I’m not that kinda guy,” Wainwright laughed.

  
“How ‘bout that cute blonde you were dancing with last night?” the other one of Wainwright’s friends said. “She had her hands all over you. She was spicy!”

  
“You met a spicy blonde, huh? Do tell,” Duke grinned. “You might be married but I’m not. You catch her name?”

  
“She had a beautiful name—Meredith,” Wainwright rhapsodized. He shook his head. “Oh, if I were a younger man, Duke—“

  
As he said the words, two things began to happen. Duke saw the lines appearing in Nathan’s and the other two men’s faces, and Wainwright’s own complexion smooth and fill out, his hair darkening.

  
“Duke, what’s happening?” Nathan asked, suddenly nearly twenty years older. “It’s like what happened to you with Helena!”

  
“I know,” Duke said, and knocked the rod loose from Wainwright’s grasp.

  
“Hey, what the—“he broke off, seeing his friends age. “What the hell’s happening to them?” he cried.

  
“It’s okay, calm down,” Duke assuaged him, but Wainwright began panicking. “Something’s happening to them, make it stop!”

  
“I’m trying, but you’re doing this!” Duke told him. “Calm down, if you panic, you’re making it worse!”

  
“Duke, do something,” Nathan wheezed. “Now I know how you felt.”

  
Duke pushed Wainwright down in the chair, his hand on Wainwright’s forehead, as he had done Susie in the bathtub, and summoned the aether, one eye on Nathan, who looked to be rapidly nearing seventy.

  
He grunted as the aether came toward, full of anger and fear and he battled it down. This Trouble was stronger, more intense and it fought against him, and tried to escape to a new host, but Duke finally managed to pull it into himself, seeing Wainwright returning to his rightful age and Nathan and the others to theirs, and he sagged to the deck.

  
He glanced up at Nathan, his eyes pitch black.

  
“Duke,” Nathan breathed, but Duke waved him off.

  
“It’ll pass,” he croaked. “Are you okay?”

  
“Yeah, yeah, I’m all right,” Nathan replied.

  
“Good—then help them,” Duke muttered, staggering to his feet and going into the engine room. He closed the door behind him, and then closed his eyes, focusing on the Armory, and appeared in it.

  
“Duke? What are you doing here?” Vince asked.

  
Duke pulled the aether from him, meeting its resistance at being removed, but he finally got it into a dormant orb.

  
“It tried to escape into someone else,” he told Vince, who looked grim at the news. “I was too scared to try to expel it back there, for fear that it might. Vince, these aren’t like Haven Troubles—not at all.”

  
“I was afraid of that,” Vince said gravely. “I’m also afraid it’s only going to be uphill from here.”

_You might have let me in on that from the start, Vince._


	6. What Is And What Should Never Be

_**The Crocker Chronicles**_  
_**Chapter 6**_  
_**"What Is And What Should Never Be**_ "

 

_**17 November** _

  
_After I dropped off the Incubus Trouble orb with Vince, I went back to do damage control with Wainwright and his buddies._

  
_It reminded me a lot of Beatty's Trouble, the one that resulted in my daughter and me nearly dying from old age in two days (Helena was a Succubus, for the record; there is a difference). And there’s a kind of irony in the fact that I saved Nathan from the Trouble he helped save me from. Well, almost the same._

  
_Anyway, I managed to convince Wainwright and the others that the combination of heat and the locally brewed exotic beer they'd been putting away all afternoon had caused them to have a mass hallucination. (Hey, it’s more creative than that 'gas leak' explanation you always trotted out, Teagues.)_

  
_Once back to port, I insisted on them getting checked out at the clinic; one, to make sure the others didn't have Meredith's Trouble prints, and two, to cover Jake's butt so these yahoos don't sue him or something. The other two were clean, fortunately, and the doctor said they’d all live, so score one for Team Crocker._

  
_It turns out Dwight's medic friend is actually a doctor, who's going to go see Mr. Diego, and is bringing me along as a 'colleague', so we're going to meet up with him this evening during shift change at the hospital. I hope Diego's Trouble doesn't put up as much of a fight as Wainwright's did. It kind of took something out of me--something I'm not sure I can get back all that easily either._

 

Duke met up with Nathan and Dwight in Nathan’s room. McHugh was also there, and he blankly stared when Duke walked in.

  
“Holy crap,” he got out. “Y’know, I thought you guys were dreaming or something. But it’s really Crocker.” He looked Duke over. “Kinda hoped we’d seen the last of you,” he commented.

  
“Nice to see you too, McHugh,” Duke answered. “Still selling that bargain-basement swill as premium draft over at The Shaven Mane?” he asked innocently, getting a dirty look from McHugh.

  
“Okay, enough,” Dwight cut in, giving them both a stern look.

  
“How are the guys?” Nathan asked Duke. “Are they gonna be okay?”

  
“Doctor told them the same thing I did. A combination of too much sun, too much alcohol, and not enough water will make anybody hallucinate,” Duke shrugged.

  
“I’m glad you were able to save them, Duke,” Dwight told him.

  
“Yeah, well, I kind of had a vested interest in saving them too,” Duke answered, glancing at Nathan. “Can’t send the bridegroom back home an old man,” he smiled. “Have you heard from your friend yet?”

  
“Yeah, I have,” Dwight said, and tossed a bag at Duke. “Here, you’ll need these. He’s actually a doctor on a neighboring island; so his story will be is that he’s had a similar case where he works, and you’re his colleague,” he continued.

  
Duke perused the contents of the bag, seeing surgical scrubs, a white lab coat and a stethoscope, along with an ID badge for a nearby island hospital that had his picture with Dr. D. Crocker, printed underneath it.

  
“Look at that, I’m a doctor at last,” Duke grinned. “Nana Crocker would be so proud of me.” He inspected the badge. “Nice work.”

  
“I put that together for you,” McHugh put in.

  
“Thank you,” Duke replied. “So when do we meet him?”

  
“Six p.m. is shift change, so we’ll get lost in the shuffle,” Dwight informed him, and Duke nodded.

  
“Smart,” he remarked.

  
“Sometimes all that Army training comes in handy,” Dwight said, he and McHugh exchanging looks.

  
“I got all my Commando training dealing with the Troubles,” Duke replied.

  
“Sometimes I think the Troubles were the better education,” Dwight cracked. “I don’t think there’s anything in this world I couldn’t deal with anymore after that.”

  
“Amen to that,” McHugh said, and took a swig from the beer he was nursing.

  
Nathan’s phone beeped then and he glanced at it, reading the message that had been sent to him.

  
“That’s Stan-he says that Mathis is on the move back to the hotel,” he said. “Does he live in the bungalows too?”

  
“Yeah, he’s a couple doors down from mine,” Duke replied. “Or unless he’s on his way to see Shelley,” he continued, his face growing concerned that he might be going to collect Susie’s Trouble.

  
Dwight’s phone beeped next and he answered it.

  
“Hey Doug,” he said. “Yeah, yeah, we’re on our way,” he finished, and hung up. “That’s my friend Doug,” he told the group. “He’s headed for the hospital now, he wants us to meet him there, so you need to get changed, Duke.”

  
“What about Mathis?” McHugh said.

  
“I’ll go with Stan and help him keep an eye on him. We won’t let him hurt Shelley and Susie,” he promised Duke. “Go with Dwight and make your record three for three,” he half-smiled.

  
“Duke, you think you can handle this?” Dwight asked.

  
“I have to,” Duke said. He looked out of the window towards the beach, towards the little town he’d taken up temporary residence in. “I don’t want everything we lost to the Troubles to have all been for nothing.”

  
The other three nodded agreement and Dwight put a hand on Duke’s shoulder.

  
“You better get dressed, ‘Doc,” he told him, and Duke took the bag of clothes to the bathroom, getting dressed quickly, and soon emerged with the bag in hand, now wearing the scrubs, the lab coat draped over his arm.

  
“If you guys see William, just leave him be, don’t try to apprehend him, don’t even let him see you,” Duke warned. “He may not even know Haven’s Trouble-free now; or that you are too, and I’d hate to see him give you an all-new one. These Troubles they’re handing out—they’re not pleasant ones.”

  
“We could just shoot him on sight,” McHugh suggested.

  
“If he’s advanced his power to the level like Croatoan’s was, it won’t do any good,” Nathan spoke. “I emptied a clip in him back in Haven and nothing.”

  
“I don’t think he’s anywhere near that strong,” Duke stated. “Not yet, anyway. He sets Mathis off, he could very well make that a reality.”

  
Nathan looked to Duke. “Is it possible for William control you since you’re made out of aether also?” he asked.

  
“I control my aether,” Duke told him. “Remember what I told you last night? The difference between William’s aether minions and me is I’m my own man; they’re not. Vince and Howard don’t control me; I work with them, not for them.”

  
“Duke Crocker is nobody’s bitch,” Nathan remembered with a sad smile.

  
Duke glanced over his shoulder at him.

  
“Damn straight,” he grinned. “We better get going. Be careful, please, Nathan.”

  
“Good luck to you as well.”

  
The group parted ways, Nathan off to the bungalows to join Stan, and Dwight, McHugh and Duke off to St. Mary’s Hospital, and somehow, Duke was not terribly surprised to see Howard waiting for them, now also dressed as a doctor.

  
“Vincent sent me to collect this one directly from you,” he told Duke. “He said you had some concerns about transporting Troubles in your body.”

  
“Define concerns,” Dwight said, glancing from one to another.

  
“Aether likes aether, I guess,” Duke answered, trying to keep his tone light. But Howard was right; it’d been very difficult trying to pull that aether back out of him, and he couldn’t help but wonder if William might already know about him as an Armory guardian.

  
_He’s built himself a new Mara in this Meredith,_ he thought. He saw Howard’s nod at him, and he rolled his eyes.

  
“Is something the matter?” Dwight asked.

  
“Howard’s sort of tuned in to my frequency,” Duke replied. “He can read my mind if he’s close enough to me.”

  
“Not so much read it as I get impressions of your thoughts from you. We are not so much different, you and I,” Howard said.

  
Duke gave him a choice remark mentally as a reply, and Howard frowned at him as he watched them walk down the corridors to the Quarantine Unit, where they found a petite Asian man waiting for them.

  
“Dwight—hey, McHugh, you still running around?” he greeted, both men towering over him as they exchanged hugs.

  
“Doug Seo, this is Duke—he’s going to take a look at the guy you’re going to see,” Dwight said.

  
“Pleased to meet you,” Dr. Seo greeted, shaking hands with Duke, revealing an extremely powerful grip. “I talked with Dr. Nielsen, he’s a gastroenterologist called in about Mr. Diego. He’s never seen anything like it.”

  
He leaned in closer. “I have to confess—neither have I.”

  
“Just get Duke in there with you, and he can fix it. Remember some of the things we talked about?” Dwight asked, and Dr. Seo nodded.

  
“I remember,” he replied. “Still think you’re crazy. Did all that stuff really happen?” he asked McHugh and Duke.

  
“What stuff?” Duke asked innocently, long used to playing dumb for outsiders when it came to Haven.

  
“Suffice it to say, Dwight has told a few tall tales. I believe in the supernatural, Mr. Crocker,” Dr. Seo said. “I suspect you do too.”

  
_Dude, I am supernatural_ , Duke thought. He grinned to himself, thinking of the little pest who later became his friend, Seth the Darkside Seeker. _Oh, Seth, if you could only see me now!_

  
“Well, that’s neither here or there,” Duke muttered. “Let’s just say that we don’t want a repeat performance.”

  
“Agreed,” Dwight muttered.

  
Dr. Seo went over to the desk, gesturing for Duke to follow him.

  
“May I help you, Doctor?” she asked.

  
“Yes, I heard about a case you have in quarantine, an Ernesto Diego,” Dr. Seo began politely. “I have been treating a similar case over in Bocas del Toro. This is my intern, Dr. Crocker,” he introduced Duke. “We would like to see Mr. Diego, if that’s permissible.”

  
“One moment,” the nurse answered, and a stout Hispanic man joined them shortly. _Dr. Eduoard Garcia,_ read the embroidered name on his coat, and he shook hands with the pair.

  
“Mr. Diego was admitted to the hospital complaining of gastric pain,” Dr. Garcia began. “Once he was here, however, he began vomiting at first what we thought was dark blood; however, all upper and lower GI’s reveal no serious injuries, illness or bleeding.”

  
“Is he still vomiting it?”

  
Dr. Garcia frowned. “It’s not so much vomiting—as expelling it from his mouth,” he said. “We put him quarantine as a safeguard, in case it turned out to be a tropical illness. But his blood work is fine. He is perfectly healthy for a 67-year-old man, other than—“he mimed pulling something out of his mouth. Also, it does seem to occur just after meals, but again, the tests reveal no gastric issues.”

  
“Have you analyzed the substance he’s expelling?” Duke questioned, hoping he sounded medically trained.

  
“Yes. Again, like nothing we’ve ever seen before; it’s a thick tar-like substance, but it isn’t petroleum-based, it’s almost—biologic, but isn’t.”

  
_Aether,_ Duke thought. _They made his Trouble so that he throws up aether! That way, William can get his hands on the stuff whenever he wants!_

  
“We’ll take a look at him, with your permission,” Dr. Seo replied.

  
“I’m sorry, but his daughter isn’t allowing any visitors,” Dr. Garcia said. “She’s been very helpful with him—barely allows the nurses to monitor him.”

  
“Wait--his daughter?” Duke questioned. Jake had said that Mr. Diego only had one son who lived in Miami and that his wife had died a couple of years ago. There was no daughter; but he suspected that he knew who had a good reason to pose as a daughter.

  
“Is she a pretty blonde-haired girl? I think we might have seen her downstairs,” Duke questioned.

  
“You may have; actually, it’s getting close to the time she or her husband usually comes to see to Mr. Diego,” Dr. Garcia said. “However, if you speak to her about your case, I’m sure she’ll allow you to examine him. She’s been very concerned about her father.”

  
The phone Dwight had given him buzzed, and Duke saw the message from Dwight: _WILLIAM AND A WOMAN JUST CAME THROUGH DOORS, HEADED YOUR WAY._

  
Duke looked up, seeing Howard, who stepped forward, and gestured.

  
Instantly, the hospital fell silent, the people frozen motionless in place, and Duke gazed at him.

  
“Using a Trouble, Howie?” he asked. “Don’t let anyone bump them, they’ll shatter.”

  
“You mean the Frozen Trouble that you retrieved from Alex Sena,” Howard said unsmiling, and Duke flinched at the memory. “This is not that Trouble,” he continued. “They are merely frozen in time. Unfortunately, this will not work on William and Meredith.”

  
“No, it won’t,” said William, pushing past an orderly, who bumped into the wall and fell over, landing harmlessly on the floor. “Byron,” he greeted Howard, and then surveyed Duke, grinning.

  
“You know it’s a felony impersonating a doctor, right?” he laughed, glancing over Duke’s scrubs.

  
“So is impersonating a human being, William,” Duke answered, and William’s smile faded.

  
“We have a few things to discuss, you and me,” he said flatly. “In regards to an incident that involves you and my old sweetheart.”

  
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Duke responded.

  
“Oh, but I think there is,” William answered, his tone heated. “Wuornos told me about you and Mara. That makes me angry, Duke.”

  
_I can’t believe Nathan dimed me out to this psycho about her,_ Duke thought but aloud he said, “Well, a gentleman never tells on a lady, William. But, yes, I guess you could say she decided to trade up.”

  
“ _Trade up_? You aren’t even worthy of shining her shoes,” William snarled. “Your people are barely walking upright compared to us.”

  
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ve heard this song before,” Duke sighed. “You’re so advanced, and yet here you are, acting like a jealous schoolboy.”

  
“Hm-you may have something there,” William noted. “Anyway, Mara’s old news.”

  
He kissed the hand of the woman with him. “I got a new girl now,” he continued. “Meredith, this is Duke Crocker. I told you about him and his pals back in Haven. Duke, this is Meredith. You’ve no doubt been admiring her handiwork.”

  
Meredith gave him a smile that would have charmed him, had he still been alive; but Duke found her charms quite resistible now.

  
“Hello, Duke,” she replied, tossing her hair back. “I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

  
“Gave her Brody’s old Charm Trouble, did you?” he asked, arms folded over his chest. “No wonder you’re able to go around touching people with no problem.”

  
“William, you must stop this at once,” Howard directed sternly. “Little damage has been done so far. Return home and we can clean up the mess and leave this world alone.”

  
“Leave it alone? I _hate_ this place,” William said with a good deal more heat than Duke would have liked. “I want to see it nothing but smoldering ash for what it did to Mara! I thought Croatoan would have crushed this place by now!”

  
“Croatoan has been captured,” Duke said.

  
“So, you and Audrey and Lover Boy got him in a new Barn after all,” William observed. “That must’ve been a hell of a speech she gave him.”

  
“She went in with him,” Howard answered. “Audrey Parker is gone.”

  
“I’m just curious as to how _you_ survived him,” William said to Duke.

  
Duke leaned in closer to him.

  
“I didn’t,” he answered.

  
“I told you,” Meredith said to William. “I knew you weren’t alive.”

  
“So they made a aether construct from Duke’s memories,” William noted. “Good to know,” he gestured at Duke, who crossed his arms, and looked at them. He gestured again, his face puzzled.

  
“You can’t control me, William,” Duke told him. “And you’re not going to use Mr. Diego for your aether connection anymore either.”

  
William gave him a skeptical look, and then addressed Howard.

  
“You finally figured out how to bond aether with a soul,” William said to Howard with an almost admiring tone. “You should help us out, Duke,” he added.

  
“And why would I want to do that?”

  
“Because—you won’t exist anymore if you don’t,” William said as though it should have been obvious. “They didn’t tell you about that, did they?” he grinned slyly, seeing Duke’s expression. “No, of course they didn’t. They needed their freshly-killed lab rat to be cooperative. You _were_ killed, weren’t you? With your Trouble, I’d be surprised if they _hadn’t_ bumped you off,” he commented. “If you’d known you’d be stuck as aether forever you’d never have done it.”

  
“What are you talking about?” Duke sighed.

  
“Say you and Howard defeat Meredith and I, and they seal off my realm and your old realm from the Void forever. But what do they do with you?” he questioned Duke. “Even if you’re ‘friendly aether’,” he gestured with his fingers, “you can’t be in your world; and there certainly won’t be places for you in mine either. The laws there are pretty strict regarding aether nowadays. So your two options for existence is either being trapped in some inter-dimensional prison with Croatoan; or out in the Void. And I can tell you from personal experience,” he continued. “That is an extremely lonely existence. No afterlife paradise for Duke Crocker; just an endless empty wasteland where the sun never rises or sets, and _no_ one else at all.”

  
“You’re lying,” Duke said, glancing at Howard, who was unreadable. “And you’re not getting your hands on Mr. Diego—or any more aether.”

  
“Ah, this was our last trip for it anyway,” William taunted. “I think we’ve packed Mr. Mathis pretty full as it is. I might not have packed him as tightly as Mara did you, but she had a 500-year head start from the Crockers collecting Troubles.”

 

Duke advanced on William, but he pulled out a pistol, leveling at Dr. Seo’s head.

  
“Don’t try to be a hero, Duke,” William warned. “My trigger finger’s a lot quicker than you are,” he continued, pulling him along with them to an emergency exit door. “It is going to happen soon—real soon. So just get ready,” he finished, and he pushed Seo towards Duke as they ducked out the side door.

  
Duke caught the doctor, and laid him on the ground, and made to run after them, but Howard stopped him.

  
“They’re gone,” he told them. “They’ve slipped back to my old world. You have to hurry,” he ordered. “Go cure Mr. Diego, and then we will make our plans on what to do next.”

  
Duke gazed down the hallway, seeing McHugh and Dwight frozen in place, his face sad as he came to the realization that Vince had been right; this wasn’t their fight anymore.  
“We can fix it,” Howard said quietly behind him. “But right now, you have to cure Mr. Diego.”

  
Duke turned and entered the Quarantine Unit, going over to the little man sitting in the bed watching a Spanish-speaking station, the TV playing on in the background as Duke stretched a hand out to his forehead, pulling the aether from the little man’s body. It came forward with surprisingly little resistance, and Duke corralled it into a ball once more.

  
He exited the ward, and silently handed it to Howard, who placed it into his pocket.

  
“Is all of what William said true?” Duke asked. “Am I doomed to be black goo forever?”

  
“We will find a way to give you your freedom when this is all behind us,” Howard promised solemnly. “Remember what you told Dwight?”

  
“I told him if he believed, Lizzie could stay,” Duke replied. “But you and Vince told me to say that to him.”

  
“And we would not have said it if it were not true,” Howard said, putting a hand on Duke’s shoulder as the hospital came to life around them once more, the staff blinking in surprise, as though they’d forgotten something for a moment, but couldn’t recall what.

  
He saw he’d received a message from Nathan. _LOST MATHIS,_ it read. _REGROUP AT THE HOTEL_.

  
_SEE YOU SOON,_ he texted back, and looked to Howard.

  
“Let’s get this over with,” he sighed.

* * *

 

A short time later, Duke and Howard entered Nathan’s hotel room, where Nathan, Dwight, McHugh and Stan were gathered.

  
“Duke?” Stan goggled. “Is it really you?”

  
“Yes, it’s really me,” Duke grinned, as Stan hugged him close. “It’s nice to see you again too, Stan.”

  
“I’m sorry we lost him, Duke,” Nathan said. “We were right on his tail and then he just—disappeared.”

  
“I think William and Meredith took him with them or transported him elsewhere. They opened a thinny and got away from us,” Duke sighed.

  
“I should’ve left him in the Void,” Nathan muttered.

  
“It’s okay, Nate,” Duke said, and glanced at Howard, who gestured, freezing all four men in front of them.

  
Duke looked at each of them; four faithful friends who were willing to risk their lives to fight the Troubles once more with their brother-in-arms. But things were different now. And Duke had enough on his conscience as it was.

  
“It won’t hurt them, will it?” he asked.

  
“Not in the least,” Howard told him. “We are only taking the memories of them seeing and talking with us.”

  
“Vince had told me this wasn’t their fight anymore,” Duke said. “I just—“

  
“I know, Duke. I had a family once too,” Howard told him gently. “Your author Thomas Wolfe was right—you can’t go home again.”

  
“Home came to me, though,” Duke laughed, his eyes bright. “But—can I tell Nathan something before you erase his mind?”

  
Howard nodded.

  
Duke stepped in front of Nathan, who stood motionless, looking into the china-blue eyes of his lifelong friend.

  
“Hey Nate,” he began. “I want you to go back to Haven, and marry our girl,” he laughed, tears streaking his face. “And have tons of kids and a dog, and a good life. And I want you to stop carrying around all the guilt about me,” he went on. “You did what had to be done. I’ll miss you, Nate,” he whispered in his ear. “But it’s okay. I want you to know that it’s okay.”

  
He glanced back at Howard. “Ready when you are.”

  
Howard opened the door, and they exited the room. As the door closed, they could hear the four of them talk to one another.

  
“Man, that was such a monster fish on the end of that line today,” they heard Dwight saying. “I can’t believe you let him get _away,_ Wuornos!”

  
Duke didn’t stay long enough to hear Nathan’s reply as he walked down the hallway and out into the late afternoon sun.

* * *

 

Some hours later, Duke soaked in his tub, thinking over the events of the day. He wondered where his friends’ plane was as they winged their way back home; back to Haven.  
He poured another shot of Gentleman Jack, and listened to the song playing on the radio.

 

 _Then what’s to stop us, pretty baby_  
_But what is and what should never be_

 

 _Got that one right, Robert_ , Duke thought glumly, and could only wonder what the future would hold for him.

* * *

 

Somewhere over the Atlantic, as their plane leveled off their ascent, Nathan sat staring out of the window for a long period of time, and Dwight finally put down his magazine, observing him.

  
“Penny,” he said to Nathan.

  
“Hm?" Nathan startled.

"Penny for your thoughts."

 

"Oh, nothing,” Nathan muttered. He frowned, and then spoke.

  
“I dreamed about Duke last night,” he said.

  
“Thought you said you’d quit having those dreams,” Dwight commented, looking concerned.

  
“This wasn’t like that,” Nathan replied. “I dreamed that he came into my room, and sat down on the edge of my bed.”  He hesitated. “He told me that it was okay—that he was okay,” he soldiered on, his eyes growing bright a moment. “That he forgave me for—what happened. And I _believed_ him, Dwight.”

  
“Maybe he did,” Dwight told him kindly. “So maybe it’s time you forgave yourself, huh?”

  
“Maybe so,” Nathan replied.


	7. Point Of No Return

**The Crocker Chronicles**   
**Chapter 7**   
**"Point Of No Return"**

**18 November**

  
_Maybe I should see Vince and Howard about maybe taking some of the more 'human-like' qualities out of me; my head feels like someone's using it for bass drum practice this morning. Sometimes, Jack is no gentleman. Not to mention an ache where my heart ought to be. Apparently, heartache happens for the dead as well._

  
_I managed to pull myself together and then went for an aerial scan of the island. I guess that's one of the cool things about being made out of aether; I can fly! I let myself turn back into what I would guess would now be my natural state (little black spheres) and left out early enough just before sunrise. I also made sure to fly high enough so that if I were to be spotted, I would just look like a flock of birds to someone from the ground._

  
_I could discover no sign of William, Meredith or Mathis on this island, or any of the neighboring ones as I swooped around, but they've been busier than I thought. There are now approximately a dozen more hand prints on people; and my first stop is the young guy I saw with the surfboard my first day here later today. I can feel his Trouble has activated-it's kind of like the Glendowers' Trouble, I think--he doesn't understand what's happening to him, and he's scared. I know how he feels._

  
_I keep thinking back to the first time I read the Crocker journal. If only we'd known what our Trouble was actually doing. Everyone thought the Crockers were helping to stop their Trouble; but the only one who was being helped in the long run was Croatoan!_

  
_Vince let me know that Nathan and the others landed safely back in Haven. I hate that Nathan won't remember the last time we talked. But Vince says that he had made sure that Nathan would remember what I had told him; only that he would remember it as a dream. And who knows? Maybe we'll all meet up again the afterlife-no more Troubles for all of us._

* * *

 

A short time later, Duke made his way down to the beach, surfboard in tow, back to where he first encountered the young man he’d seen coming out of the surf when he’d landed in Jean Batiste. He adjusted his board under his arm, and headed towards the water.

  
Duke could see that the guy was young; no more than nineteen or twenty. His blonde hair was pulled down into his face as he finished getting his gear stowed on the beach.

  
He noted that he and the kid were alone, and he felt a sense of relief. Maybe this Trouble wouldn’t give him too much of a fight, and he could get back to trying to track down William and Meredith.

  
Duke thought on what Howard had told him in the Barn. You can transport yourself between my old world and yours, he’d said. Duke had been putting it off; but he had to find William and Meredith and make them stop, one way or another; and if it meant he had to go into another world, then so be it. But first, he determined, he was going to relieve this poor kid of his burden.

  
“Hey,” Duke greeted him.

  
The kid made to dart down the beach, but Duke stopped him.

  
“Hey—look,” he said. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

  
“Don’t talk to me,” the kid uttered. “I’m a freak.”

  
“You’re not a freak,” Duke replied. “Look, I can help you.”

  
“How can you help this?” the kid asked, pushing his hair back.

  
Duke could see the scales forming on the boy’s skin, developing a sort of iridescent quality to them, and unless he was mistaken, he could see the beginnings of gill slits on his neck.

  
“Have you talked to a girl in the last few days?” Duke asked.

  
“I’ve talked to lots of girls,” the kid retorted, glaring at Duke, who realized his intentions were being misinterpreted.

  
“Look, I’m not trying to pick you up,” Duke assured him. “My name’s Duke—what’s yours?”

  
The kid huffed a laugh. “Your name’s Duke? Mine’s Luke,” the guy said, getting a grin from Duke, extending a hand to shake. “Luke Hansen.”

  
_Hope you’re not related to the Hansens back home in Haven_ , Duke thought, but asked “I’m trying to find this particular girl, her name’s Meredith.”

  
“Yeah, I met her. She was so beautiful,” the guy sighed. “Is she your girl or something?”

  
“Or something,” Duke replied.

  
“She was with some guy—he was older, though. But she started talking to me, and it was like I just couldn’t tear myself away from her. She was one of those girls who likes touching you while she talks, y’know?” he asked Duke, who nodded. “Her guy didn’t seem too worried about it though. Maybe they got one of those open relationships.”

  
“Who knows? He’s a weirdo,” Duke muttered, and Luke grinned at him.

  
“Are they friends of yours?”

  
“Not really,” Duke muttered.

"You a cop or something?"

"Me? No," Duke laughed. "They're scam artists," he fibbed. "I just don't like to see people getting taken advantage of, that's all."

The kid nodded understanding. "Once the local cops catch onto them, they'll run 'em off quick enough. They don't like anybody damaging the tourist trade here."

"“Hey, let’s hit the surf,” Duke told him, changing the subject, and they both ran into the water, straddling their boards.

  
They paddled out into the surf in silence for a bit, and then Duke spoke.

  
“So how long has—“he gestured at the scales—“this been going on?”

  
“Couple days ago,” Luke replied. “The doctor thinks it’s some kind of skin condition. He says maybe I’m having a reaction to something I’m using. But I’ve used the same sunblock, laundry soap and shower soap for years.”

  
“You could be having a reaction to something in the ocean,” Duke remarked.

  
“Maybe,” Luke said vaguely. “But I’ve surfed here most of my life.”

  
“Who knows what they’re dumping in the water these days,” Duke answered. They were far enough out now to ride the wave back in, and they sat astride their boards, bobbing in the water, waiting for the right one.

  
“I might be able to help you, Luke,” Duke told him. “Maybe help you get rid of your—skin problem.”

  
“If you could, that’d be awesome,” Luke sighed. “I hate it, it’s creepy,” he grumbled, but smiled shyly. “I kind of always used to wish I was a fish when I was a kid. Didn’t realize I might actually turn into one someday,” he remarked, looking at the scaly patches.

  
Was it Duke’s imagination, or had the scales on Luke’s back become more pronounced the longer he was in the water?

  
Luke coughed, and began to wheeze.

  
“What’s the matter?” Duke asked urgently.

  
“Feel like…I can’t…breathe,” Luke choked.

  
Duke paddled closer to him, catching hold of Luke’s board, linking his arm with Luke’s.

  
“What are…you doing?” Luke gasped. His lips were turning blue, and Duke knew he had to act swiftly; or Luke Hansen was going to turn into something altogether new.

  
“Trust me,” Duke said. He put his hand against Luke’s head, summoning the aether to come to him.

  
Out of the corner of his eye, Duke saw the wave coming at them, a large swell of the ocean, its crest frothy with foam, an unstoppable mammoth making its way to the shore.

  
Duke broke away from Luke, and they both grabbed for their boards. “Just hold on,” Duke called. “I can fix it—just hold on, okay?”

  
Luke nodded his understanding, and the wave broke, washing down toward the pair, and Duke stood on his board, a little rusty after not having gotten to surf for some time, but he steadied himself and found his balance.

  
He cast a glance over at Luke, who was wobbling, struggling to get his balance. Duke could see him struggling to breathe, and then he fell from the board into the water.

  
“Luke!” he cried out, and abandoned his board, plunging into the surf to find the kid, struggling to swim back to where he’d fallen in, but he might as well try to stop the sun from rising as the relentless torrent of water pushed him back toward shore.

  
Duke waded back in to the shoreline, soaking wet, his eyes anxiously scanning the surf, watching for Luke to bob back up. But there was no sign of him.

  
“Luke? Luke!” Duke shouted out at the water. He ran back out, swimming hard toward where he’d last seen him. He dove underneath the water, doing his best to search for the kid. He closed his eyes, trying to feel for the aether in Luke’s body. It too had resisted him; and in fact, had almost seemed to spring into overdrive in Luke’s body when Duke had tried to call it forward.

  
He came up again. “Luke!” he screamed out at the water, getting no response, and dove yet again, this time letting himself turn back to aether to try to find him.

  
He felt the aether in Luke’s body ahead of him. It was moving into deeper water, and he surged forward, trying desperately to find Luke before he drowned.

  
Ahead of him, there was a shape in the water, and Duke picked up speed to reach it, and then stopped at the sight of Luke.

  
Luke’s skin was now covered with scales, his hands and feet now more like swimming fins, with fin ridges appearing along his forearms, his back and his legs, and Duke could see that the gill slits that had been forming on Luke’s neck were now fully operational.

  
_I’m too late,_ he thought, watching as Luke’s luminescent yellowy eyes swept over him, before he darted away from Duke with lightning speed. Duke knew instinctively that there would be no turning back this Trouble as he chased after him; and slowed his pursuit.

  
_I can’t save him from it now. I failed him_ , he reflected, watching Luke get smaller in the distance until he vanished entirely. _I’m sorry, kid_.

  
Duke re-formed his body, and surfaced.

  
On the shore, he could see a lifeguard, come to investigate Duke’s shouts.

  
“What happened?” he called out to Duke.

  
“My friend wiped out on his board—I can’t find him!” Duke answered.

  
The lifeguard blew his whistle, summoning two others, and they launched a boat into the water, but Duke knew they weren’t going to find Luke Hansen.

  
Duke sat on the beach, watching for nearly two hours as they searched the water. He diligently answered the local police’s questions as he watched the ongoing search for Luke.

  
“The waters can be treacherous around here,” the detective told Duke. “Even an experienced surfer can get caught in the undertow and get pulled out to sea.”

  
Duke nodded dully, and the detective put a hand on his shoulder.

  
“We’ll let you know if we find him,” he said gently to Duke. “But there’s a strong possibility that we may not find him at all.”

  
_I have a strong certainty you won’t find him_ , Duke thought glumly, but aloud he said “I know. But thank you for trying.”

  
The detective nodded and walked away, and Duke made to flop back down again to the sand, and found he was sprawling in the floor of the Barn, where he found Vince waiting for him. Duke got to his feet, feeling like a kid with a bad report card in front of his father. They’d entrusted him to stop the Troubles from starting again; and he’d let them down practically out of the gate.

  
“I failed him, Vince,” Duke said brokenly. “I tried, but—“

  
“You did your best, Duke,” Vince answered sincerely. “I think they must have booby-trapped the boy's Trouble.”

  
“What do you mean?” Duke asked.

  
“When you tried to remove his Trouble, instead of becoming dormant, it fully activated, working at lightning speed to change the boy. William and Meredith did it deliberately,” Vince replied.

  
“How do you know that?” Duke demanded.

  
“Because I told him that is how I would have done it if there had been someone like you around,” said a man, emerging from the hallway.

  
“Croatoan,” Duke said, his dark eyes studying the older slightly stout man before him. “What’d you do, leave William a how-to guide?”

  
“No, I did not. Actually, I always thought William was something of an idiot,” Croatoan remarked. “But perhaps he’s not quite as stupid as I thought he was.”

  
“Bringing back the Troubles isn’t going to help anybody,” Duke snapped. “He needs to be stopped.”

  
“And you’re going to do it?” Croatoan chuckled.

  
“Why not--what’s he going to do, kill me again?” Duke retorted.

  
“If you do know what William is planning, Croatoan now would be the time to tell it,” Vince told him.

  
“My guess is now that he knows about your little secret aether weapon that you created in Duke here, he’s going to set about to make one of his own,” Croatoan said.

  
“Duke’s coming into being as he is was a one in a billion occurrence. A perfect storm of conditions, like catching lightning in a bottle,” Vince said sternly. “I don’t think that what happened with him could ever be duplicated again.”

  
“But anything is possible,” Croatoan replied. “And knowing William, he’ll keep going until he replicates your success. Only I don’t think the aether-man he’ll build will be quite so helpful.”

  
“I’m willing to bet that he won’t be,” Duke answered. “So what would you do, if you were in William’s shoes?”

  
“I would track him back to our world. That’s where he is, you know.”

  
“I know,” Duke exhaled.

  
Croatoan regarded him curiously. “So why haven’t you gone after him there already? You’re aether! You have nothing to fear from him,” he went on. “You’ve already died once. And aether can’t really be destroyed.”

  
“Yes, it can,” Duke said. “You made me destroy the aether core.”

  
“Then don’t let him turn you into an aether core,” Croatoan said as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

  
“He couldn’t do that to Duke,” Vince answered sternly.

  
“With the right set of Troubles, and in our world too—yes, he could,” Croatoan answered. “I think that’s what he’s doing, Duke—he’s waiting for you to pursue him over there so that you can be—confined,” he finished, smiling. “Once he does that—he can control you.”

  
“Like you did me,” Duke said bitterly, and Croatoan shrugged.

  
“It’s why I made your family’s Trouble in the first place,” he commented, and walked away.

  
Duke glared after him before he turned his attention back to Vince, as Howard walked into the room.

  
“Do you think that’s what he wants? He wants me to pursue him to their world?” Duke questioned them.

  
“It does make sense,” Vince admitted. “William hasn’t set foot back in our old realm for over twelve hours now. So it may well be what he wants you to do.”

  
“What about the Troubles he’s left over here?”

  
“If you will help me here, we should be able to pull them out with the Armory,” Vince told him.

  
“So why didn’t we do that in the first place?” Duke asked, surprised.

  
“You had to learn how to use your abilities, Duke,” Howard spoke.

  
“What if I’d failed to pull Susie’s Trouble out of her?” Duke stated. “You were willing to let her die so I could learn?”

  
“Susie would not have died,” Vince assured him. “Howard would have never let that happen. But he is right, Duke—you had to learn to use your abilities, and now, you know what you have to do.”

  
“I told you we were not going to make the same mistakes we made with Mara,” Howard spoke. “She always had to learn she could solve Troubles the hard way. You know how they happened. And you know how to solve them,” he continued. “So now it is time that we left this world behind, and we go and prevent the same thing from happening to mine.”

  
“What happens when we go over to your world?” Duke asked.

  
“The Armory will shut every thinny on this side,” Vince said. “Any and all tears in the fabric will be sealed off permanently. William’s only options to escape will be the Void—or here.”

  
Duke thought back to what William had said to him in the hospital; that when things were over, his only options would be eternity in the Barn, or a solitary existence in the Void with only himself as company. Even if he couldn’t go home again to Haven, as long as he was still a part of this world, he still felt that connection; that he was still a part of Haven, even if he couldn’t be there.

  
Vince put a hand on his shoulder.

  
“We can give you a short time to say farewell to Jake and Shelley,” he told him. “You and I have already made our goodbyes with Haven, Duke. We lived our lives; they are still living theirs.”

  
“No looking back,” Duke answered softly, and Vince nodded.

  
“No looking back,” he repeated. “And hurry, Duke—time is of the essence.”

  
_You know, you never think you’ll be out of time to do something—until the day it runs out on you._


	8. New World Man

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 8** _   
_**"New World Man"** _

 

_**20 November** _

  
_I hate goodbyes. It seems as though I'm always saying them, and they never get easier. Like having to say goodbye to Audrey the first time she went into the Barn. And sometimes, I didn't even get to say goodbye, just poof, they're gone forever. Like Jennifer. And my dad. And Eleanor Carr, and The Chief, and lot of other people who didn't make it out alive in Haven (including yours truly)._

  
_I told Shelley that I would try to find out what happened to Mark, and asked Jake to look after her and Susie. Susie couldn't understand why I had to leave, and I don't think Shelley did either. In another time and place, maybe I could have stayed. But a 'normal' human life is pretty much off the table for me at this point in my existential existence._   
_Lately, I find myself wishing that Vince would have erased some of my memories. I would give anything if I never had to remember the feel of that knife in my hand going into Wade's body. There are days when I just want to curse Jordan McKee for all I'm worth for Troubling him; but under it all, I can't really blame her. Vince told me she was just like the rest of us--trying to find a way to end all the insanity--she just chose badly. If I hadn't had Nate and Audrey to lean on all that time, I could have very well been like him and Dad._

  
_If I had any regrets (besides the whole dying thing) it would be that I wasn't able to save my girl. I'd have traded my life for Jennifer's in two seconds if I could have; but I can't change the past. The best I can hope for is to be able to prevent the past from happening again--and that maybe somewhere, someday--I'll see her again._   
_After I got aboard the Infinity Armory Express, Vince did his thing, and we went through the Void. William was right on one thing; it's about the loneliest place I've ever seen. It reminded me a lot of the woods around Kick-Em-Jenny-Neck, only endless. Not a place I’d want to spend eternally alone._   
_We burst through the fog, and then there we were--Other-World--which, surprisingly, looks a lot like where we came from. (Somehow, I had pictured this whole Jetsons-like existence, to hear William and Mara tell it). But there are houses and trees and grass and blue skies, just like back home. So here I am, Other Existence--Duke Crocker, New World Man._

 

Duke emerged from the Armory that had materialized itself in the wooded area, and he glanced around with Howard appearing alongside him.

  
"Where are we?" Duke asked.

  
"In the woods," Howard replied, and Duke shot him a dirty look.

  
"Thank you, Agent Obvious," he retorted. "Are we near civilization, or--what? This is your turf, not mine."

  
"The city is just on the other side of the ridge," Howard told him.

  
They emerged from the woods, and Duke surveyed the city below them.

  
“You know, I’d expected something along the lines of an Aldous Huxley kind of place,” he said.

  
“Sometimes you surprise me with your knowledge of literature, Duke,” Howard observed.

  
“I might have been a criminal, but I’m not stupid,” Duke answered.

  
“No, you are not. Vincent had told me you were quite well-read.”

  
“I spent a lot of time in the Haven Library as a kid. It was better than going home,” Duke muttered. “So where do we start hunting for William and Meredith anyway?”

  
“If I remember correctly, William’s house was not too far from here,” Howard pointed out.

  
“How come it looks so much like my old world?” Duke asked.

  
“Our worlds are very similar,” Howard told him. “However, when it comes to technology, and species-wise, we are far more evolved.”

  
“Like what, for example?”

  
“We can consume your world’s version of alcohol and it doesn’t affect us the way it does you. Our bodies are able to process it better.”

  
“Whereas if I tried your version of alcohol, what would happen? “Duke prodded.

  
“It probably wouldn’t take more than a shot or two to put you under the table,” Howard faintly smiled.

  
“Gonna have to get a bottle of that,” Duke muttered.

  
“It would not affect you anyway—you are aether, Duke,” Howard reminded him.

  
“Yeah,” Duke sighed. “I’ll give you two that much—I feel so much like the old me, sometimes I forget I’m not really alive anymore.”

  
“You _are_ alive, Duke,” Howard said. “It is a different form of life than what you had before, granted. But it is life.”

* * *

  
They made their way into the town square. Duke noted that they did garner a few odd looks, but for the most part, they blended in with their wardrobe.

  
“So all these people are like Mara and William?” Duke asked softly.

  
“No. Mara was special, different. Croatoan used aether on her as a child; it gave her a particular bond that is not shared by most beings here,” Howard explained.

  
“How come William can do like her then?”

  
“In a nutshell—she Troubled him.”

  
“Do you mean that William’s being able to manipulate aether is a Trouble?” Duke goggled.

  
“Not quite,” Howard frowned. “Think of William as an athlete who has used performance-enhancing drugs. That is how he is able to do the things he does.”

  
“Not that Croatoan talked to me a lot, but I got—impressions, when I was under his control,” Duke said as they came to a stop at a street corner. “I got the impression that your leaders or whatever you call them here do not approve of aether use.”

  
“No, they do not,” Howard said gravely.

  
“Do they know about Haven?”

  
“Oh, yes, they know all about Haven,” Howard chuckled. “In fact, whenever the topic of aether-use comes up in debate, Haven is held up as the example of what can happen when it is used.”

  
“On behalf of Haven, thanks a lot,” Duke grumbled.

  
They came to a stop outside of a white house with a neatly trimmed lawn and blue shutters. There looked to be a type of television screen over the doorbell, and Howard pressed the button, a chiming sound issuing from it.

  
Instantly, William’s face appeared on the screen, and Duke looked taken aback, but Howard put a steadying hand on his arm.

  
“Hi, this is William, I’m not in right now,” William said. “Please say your name and leave a message after the beep. Beep!” he finished and a test pattern appeared briefly. The image disappeared, and then Duke could see Howard and himself on the screen.

  
“He’s not home,” Howard noted.

  
“Really,” Duke deadpanned. “I would never have guessed. I don’t suppose you have a clue as to where Meredith lives, do you?”

  
“No. I have been away from here for a very long time, Duke,” Howard stated flatly, and Duke relented.

  
“Well, as long as we’re here—do you want to see your family?” he asked gently. “I can go and do—something for a while.”

  
Howard gave him a small smile.

  
“Unfortunately, there is no going home for me either, Duke,” he said with not a small trace of sadness in his voice. “But if I were to guess as to where we could find William’s whereabouts, I would suggest the Niacene Caverns.”

  
“Where are they?”

  
“Well on the outskirts of the city. There are over a hundred miles of caverns—and Vince and I believe that there may be a new thinny hidden there.”

  
“And that means access to aether for Willie and Merry,” Duke replied.

  
Howard nodded. “So it is imperative that you find it.”

  
“Me?”

  
“As I told you Duke, you are aether. You can feel it.” He glanced around, seeing they were alone, and scanned for any recording devices. “It should be safe enough for you now.”

  
As he spoke, Duke saw out of the corner of his eye a man dressed in what he suspected was a law enforcement uniform nearing them.

  
“Um—looks like we have a reception committee,” Duke said in a low voice. “Do you want me to stay or go?”

  
“I don’t think we’ll have much choice,” Howard replied, as four more people in similar uniforms emerged from around and inside William’s house, surrounding them.

  
“Citizens,” the man approaching them said. He reminded Duke a great deal of Nathan—if Nathan had been even more of a stick in the mud than he already was. “We would like to ask you some questions.”

  
“Pertaining to?” Howard questioned.

  
“Pertaining to an incident that occurred here today,” the man said. “Come with us, please.”

  
“Whatever is was, we had nothing to do with it, we just got here,” Duke argued hotly. “And you can’t just arrest us for no reason!”

  
“We are not in your world anymore,” Howard said softly. “It would be best if we went with them to answer questions.”

 

_More like 1984 than Brave New World, if you ask me._


	9. You Can Check You Anytime You Like, But You Can Never Leave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke finds out what's on the other side of the Void--and encounters a familiar Trouble

**_The Crocker Chronicles_ **   
**_Chapter 9_ **   
**_"You Can Check Out Anytime You Like_ **   
**_But You Can Never Leave"_ **

_**2 April** _

  
_I know, I know--it looks like an enormous jump in my timeline, but remember, time moves differently in the Barn. Also, when you're dead, time is kind of irrelevant._

  
_Here in Second-Haven (I call it that because it does eerily look like where I came from, only the people are different)._

  
_Howard and I have been taken downtown to the local cop shop to 'answer questions.' It seems no matter where I go; I just can't seem to stay out of police stations. Maybe I wasn't as good a crook as I'd thought I was. Hmm._

  
_The Nathan doppelganger that hauled us in is, in a strange twist of irony, actually named Nathaniel. So far, there's no Alt-Stan, Alt-Squatch or Alt-Gloria, for that matter. (Notice I did not count Audrey, because she’s actually from here, or rather Mara was, but I digress.)_

  
_They took Howard off into another room, and left me in a holding cell. I call it that because it has one door and no windows, along with a camera that follows my every move and a table and two chairs. That's it._

  
_Since I was under observation, I figured I'd better maintain my human form and not try to fly off, and I was glad I did, because a few moments later Bizarro Nathan came into the room._

 

Duke heard the lock in the door open, and the man they'd encountered at William's house stepped into the room.

  
Amazing how much he reminds me of Nathan, Duke thought. The man observed Duke also for a few moments, and then spoke.

  
"Please sit down, Citizen," he directed firmly but politely, and Duke acquiesced.

  
Duke took him in. He had lighter brown hair than Nathan, but those same china-blue eyes. He was smooth-shaven, and wore a deep blue shirt and pants with a small badge that read NATHANIEL WINTERS on it.

  
Duke chuckled, and the cop looked up.

  
"Something amusing?" he asked.

  
"I was thinking you remind me of someone," Duke said. "His name is Nathan too."

  
"I am Officer Winters, Citizen," he stated. "What is your name?"

  
"Duke Crocker," Duke said, and the man glanced up at him.

  
"Unusual name," he murmured.

  
"My father's choice, not mine," Duke replied, trying to keep things light, but Winters clearly wasn't biting.

  
"There is nothing to be amused about, Mr. Crocker," Winters told him. "Place your hands flat on the table, please," he went on, touching what must be buttons next to his hand.

  
Duke did so, and the table flashed momentarily, and writing came up on Winters’ side of the table. Winters looked at it, and frowned.

  
"We can find no record of you anywhere," he said.

  
"That would probably be because I’m not from around here," Duke replied.

  
Winters' eyes widened marginally.

  
"Are you one of--them?" he asked.

  
"Am I one of whom?"

  
"A Halfling-meaning a person, one of whose biologics is an Outworlder,” Winters explained.

  
"No, I'm a full-on Outworlder," Duke said. "I'm from the world on the other side of the Void."

  
"I have often heard of your kind, but I never thought that I would actually see one here," Winters spoke. "We were always told that your kind could not survive the journey through the Void, that your bodies were too fragile."

  
Duke started to tell him that he still hadn't met an Outworlder; that he wasn't actually human anymore, but instead, Howard and another man came into the room.

  
The other man was older, and he glanced at Duke with interest.

  
“So this is your sentient creation,” he remarked, and Duke looked faintly annoyed.

  
“Duke Crocker, this is Raymond Reynolds, he is the force captain,” Howard introduced them, and Reynolds nodded curtly.

  
“So what’s this ‘incident’ we’re being questioned about?” Duke asked.

  
“Apparently, William has issued his first Trouble in this realm,” Howard told him. “I have explained your function to the captain, and he has agreed to take us to the victim.”

  
“ _You explained my function_?” Duke repeated. “I am not a robot, or a lab rat--I’m a human—well, I was a human being, granted I might not have had the fancy DNA like you lot, but I was still a person who deserved to be treated with dignity like every other being in the universe!”

  
“Duke—“Howard began, but Duke cut him off. He was fed up with Howard’s treatment of him as though he were a science experiment, and the seemingly prevailing Otherworlder attitude that his own species was little more than drooling Neanderthals.

  
“No. No, for centuries, you let the Troubles run amuck in my world while your world looked the other way. My family was cursed worse than most,” he went on savagely. “I don’t think there was a Crocker male in 300 years that lived to be fifty, hell, to be forty-five—including me, while you stayed safe in your non-Troubled realm. Now the shoe’s on the other foot,” Duke noted. “One Trouble and you want my help? I’m just curious as to where your help was all those years we suffered with the _hundreds_ that were unleashed on us!”

  
“There was no way to cure the Troubles before now,” Howard lectured sternly. “And you are well aware of that, Duke.”

  
“You’re the ones who are so technologically advanced as I’ve had pointed out to me so many times,” Duke sniped.

  
“Are you refusing to help us?” Reynolds asked.

  
Duke glared at him. His stiff attitude and barely concealed contempt reminded Duke very much of someone he’d been well acquainted with back in Haven: Edmund Driscoll.

  
“No, I will help,” Duke said evenly. “Because that’s what my people do—we help each other.”

  
There was a long silence in the room, and then Reynolds spoke.

  
“Mr. Crocker,” he began politely. “I am aware of the difficulties and the suffering inflicted on your kind through the centuries. We did our best to imprison the people responsible for unleashing them on your kind—on your people,” he amended. “But there was nothing that we could do to alleviate your suffering—outside of the situation that you encountered. However, Byron has led me to believe that you have resolved the issue in your world—and I do understand that it came at a great personal cost to you.”

  
“If you mean the loss of every member of my family, my own life, and the woman I loved, well then yes, it was a great personal cost,” Duke answered harshly, and then relented. “I’m sorry. I am angry that it took so long to solve them; I’m angry that my best friend had to take my life to end them—and lose the woman he loved.”

  
"Have you finished?" Howard asked coldly, as though Duke were being a petulant teenager.

  
"Just speaking my mind," Duke replied evenly. "So, if you'll pardon the pun, what's the trouble?"

  
"There's been a murder," Reynolds began, walking over to where Winters was seated. He pressed whatever invisible keypad it was that they could see in the table, and a video of two men came up.

  
They watched as the man drew out a weapon, and fired it at the other man, and he fell to the ground, dead.

  
"Looks pretty cut-and-dried," Duke remarked when the video ended.

  
"The man with the weapon is Charles Daughton; he's a senior Council member," Reynolds explained.

  
"Councilman Daughton has a lot of explaining to do," Duke said, rewatching the video clip.

  
"At the time this murder occurred, Councilman Daughton was in a closed-door meeting with myself and another high-ranking official," Reynolds told him. "This man is not Charles Daughton; yet he passed all scans to enter the building with flying colors," he went on. "It's almost as though he were--cloned."

  
"Copied," Duke answered. "For all intents and purposes, that is Councilman Daughton."

  
"Explain copied," Reynolds argued. "Don't you mean cloned?"

  
"No, I don't mean cloned," Duke said crossly. "I've run across this Trouble before, back home in Haven. It was originally owned by a man named Cornell Stamron, he was a banker who'd been caught embezzling by a coworker, and in the ensuing argument, he killed him. When he did so, he found out he had a witness--a runaway kid named Henry," he remembered. "Well, at that point, Cornell's Trouble activated, and he--split off, I guess," he continued. "You know the old 'angel on one shoulder, devil on the other' adage here?"

  
"We have a similar saying," Reynolds replied.

  
"At any rate, Cornell copied himself. Only the copy was the 'bad' side of his psyche. Two sides of the coin, so to speak."

  
"You're telling me this is actually Councilman Daughton killing this man," Reynolds said.

  
"If he got past all your security, then yes, it is him, or a form of him," Duke answered. "And--another thing."

  
"What?" Reynolds asked, his voice strained.

  
"Copies can't be killed," Duke told them. "Oh, you can shoot them or stab them, and they do die, yes, but another copy simply appears to take their place. Cornell had _several_ dead versions of himself socked away in an abandoned hotel."

  
"This is terrible," Reynolds said, aghast. "How can we stop such a creature? How did you stop it in Haven?"

  
"Cornell's copy shot him," Duke said with a faint smirk. "When he died, all the copies of him disappeared."

  
Reynolds sank down into a chair.

  
"This is a nightmare," he toned. "We can't go around murdering copies of the councilman!"

  
"Welcome to my world," Duke toned. "Cornell was just one of dozens of Troubles that I've seen--or had to deal with," he muttered.

  
"What was the worst of them?" Winters asked, unable to help himself, and Reynolds gave him a dirty look.

  
"The worst--other than my own--would be Harry Nix," Duke answered softly. "His vital organs were failing, and he 'harvested' them from family members."

"Monstrous," Reynolds breathed. "I almost hesitate to ask what yours was."

  
"Gathering the aforementioned monstrous Troubles," Duke told him. "Crockers were Trouble-Killers; in the truest sense of the word."

  
Reynolds' eyes darted towards Howard.

  
"But all of those Troubles have been ended," Howard assuaged him. "The reconstruction of the Barn has held them in check; and the other realm has been sealed off from the Void for good," he went on. "Vincent and I have talked it over--with Duke's help, if we can capture William and this Meredith woman, they can be imprisoned within the Armory," Howard finished.

  
"And that will alleviate these--Troubles, as you call them?" Winters asked.

  
"You left out Mathis," Duke said.

  
"W-Who is Mathis?" Reynolds protested.

  
"They brought him over from my world. They're doing him the way I was done--stuffing him full of Troubles until he bursts. Troubles will explode out of him and then you'll _wish_ copies of your councilman were your only concern."

  
"What can we do?" Winters asked.

  
Duke observed him. Whereas Reynolds looked like a small boy who'd had his lunch money taken by the school bully, Winters looked as though he were willing to fight.

  
"First, we find William and Meredith," Duke said. "Agent Howard suggested we begin with the Niacene Caves."

  
"I go spelunking there often," Winters said. "Sir, if I might volunteer, I'll go with Mr. Crocker."

  
Reynolds thought it over, and then nodded his approval.

  
"Okay then," Duke exhaled. "Then if we're going to be working together, you can drop the whole 'Mr. Crocker' thing. Just call me Duke--Nathan," Duke smiled slightly, and Winters returned it.

  
"Very well--Duke," he said. "I will do what I can to help you stop these--Troubles, as you called them. My partner will help too; once she returns."

 

_If her name's Audrey, I am so out of here._


	10. When The Levee Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Troubles Arrive in Outworld...

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 10** _   
_**"When The Levee Breaks"** _

 

**_ 03 April _ **

  
_As it turns out, Alt-Nathan's partner's name is Millicent Chamberlain, or as he calls her, Mil. She seems very capable and intelligent, and reminds me of Jen so much it isn’t funny—the same dark hair and eyes, the same inquisitive nature. She, like her partner, is willing to help fight the Troubles. And that's good, because if what I'm feeling is accurate, we may soon be up to our eyeballs in them._

  
_Mathis is close to going off, but wherever William and Meredith have him stashed, I am blocked from seeing where it is. I can feel that it's radiating from the Niacene Caverns, but where exactly remains a mystery._

  
_Mil has peppered me with questions about my world. Our worlds are similar environmentally; but they are about 500 years ahead of us technologically. Elon Musk would be a third-rate shade tree mechanic compared to what their tech guys can do._

 

 

Chief Reynolds escorted Howard and Duke to a luxury townhouse, where they were admitted almost immediately, and ushered into a well-appointed study, where they found a worried-looking man.

  
“Reynolds, you know I didn’t kill Hodges,” Councilman Daughton said without preamble. “I was with you—I _couldn’t_ have done it!”

  
“I know, Charles, I know,” Reynolds assured him. “I am not here to arrest you.”

  
Daughton relaxed, and then looked a little closer at Duke and Howard.

  
“B-Byron Howard?” he asked. “I haven’t seen you for years!”

  
“I’ve been away. How are you, sir?” Howard answered, shaking hands with Howard.

  
“I would say I’m well, but I seem to find myself in a rather unusual predicament at the moment,” Daughton remarked dryly.

  
“Yes,” Howard answered. “And that is why we are here. This is Duke,” he introduced him. “He can fix your Trouble.”

  
“I don’t think this is a-a Trouble,” Daughton laughed. “It’s a damned clever ruse by a miscreant, but not a Trouble. We can’t be affected by Troubles, you know that.”

  
“You can now,” Duke said.

  
“And who might you be?” Daughton asked. “Oh, yes, the Outworlder that Byron brought with him. I always understood that you people were too frail to survive the journey through the Void.”

  
“Mr. Crocker isn’t an Outworlder, not anymore. He’s an aether creation,” Reynolds told him, and Daughton got a horrified look on his face.

  
“And you're letting it roam loose?” he asked.

  
“I am not something Howard knocked together in a lab or thought up,” Duke said crossly. “I can think for myself, and I agreed to come and try to fix your Trouble, but if you don’t want my help—“

  
“Duke,” Howard said gently. “I apologize for Mr. Crocker’s outburst,” he addressed Daughton. “However, he is correct—he is not just an aether creation. He is sentient, capable of independent thought. The explanation would take longer than it would to cure your Trouble,” he exhaled. “And time is not on our side at the moment.”

  
“Howard and Crocker have tracked William Durst and Meredith McKay to here,” Reynolds said. “They believe they have an Outworlder man who has been infected with altered aether that they plan to unleash on this side.”

  
“For what possible reason would they want to do that?” Daughton gasped.

  
“Maybe they just don’t like you,” Duke cracked.

  
“These damned aether extremists,” Daughton grumbled. “Stuff’s dangerous and unpredictable; yet still they insist that it’s ‘beneficial,” he went on, glancing at Duke. “No offense.”

  
“I can understand why you would feel that way,” Duke replied. “Most aether is negatively charged—brings out the worst traits or fears in people who have been affected by it,” he continued in a gentler tone. “So what happened today with this Hodges person?” he questioned, once again employing the techniques he’d watched Audrey use on the Troubled time and time again.

  
“Tom Hodges and I have been quarrelling for years,” Daughton admitted. “It was mostly over business-but had gotten rather personal over the last couple of years.”

  
“You said mostly. What else?” Duke questioned.

  
“My wife left me for him. They’d been in love back in college, but I stole her away from him. I suppose the relationship wasn’t as dead as we’d all believed,” Daughton sighed. “I may have been jealous; but I did _not_ kill him!”

  
“But maybe deep down inside, a part of you wanted to,” Duke said.

  
Daughton nodded.

  
“What man wouldn’t when his happiness was threatened?” Daughton mumbled, and gazed at Duke. “Are you sure you can fix this?”

  
“He can’t bring Mr. Hodges back to life, if that’s what you’re asking,” Howard told him. “But he can make sure that the other you won’t come back again.”

  
“We have him in custody in a private facility,” Reynolds spoke. “What will happen when you cure the Councilman?”

  
“If it works like Cornell’s Trouble did, he’ll just disappear,” Duke said. “He’ll re-merge with your psyche.”

  
“I don’t know if I like that idea,” Daughton hedged.

  
“He’s a part of you, he’s always been there,” Howard answered. “But that is a part of all our psyches—however, most people have control over that part. Your Trouble released it—but Duke can put it back under your control.”

  
Daughton looked at Duke for a long moment, and then nodded.

  
“Do what you have to do,” he said.

  
“All right,” Duke exhaled. “Just sit down and relax, and I’ll do the rest.”

* * *

  
A short time later, Reynolds, Howard and Duke departed the townhouse.

  
“You’re sure you can stop them?” Reynolds asked as a vehicle pulled up, and Winters and Mil emerged from the vehicle.

  
“I will do my best,” Duke answered.

  
“I have to return the Councilman’s Trouble to the Armory,” Howard told Duke. “I will join you at the caverns this evening. “Do what you can,” he went on, a hand on Duke’s shoulder. “There’s a lot at stake.”

  
“I know,” Duke muttered. “Kind of wish I had my original back-up team back right now, though.”

  
“Officers Winters and Chamberlain are quite capable. You’ll do fine with them. And they can help you in ways that Audrey and Nathan could not,” he assured Duke.

  
“Like what?”

  
“I guess you will find out when the time comes,” Howard smiled mysteriously. “Good luck in your search,” he directed to the three of them as he and Reynolds climbed into the vehicle that Winters and Mil had deserted. The door closed, and the vehicle sped off.

  
Duke gave Winters and Mil a smile.

  
“Looks like it’s our turn up at bat,” he said cheerfully. “Shall we?”

  
“After you,” Mil answered, and once again, Duke was painfully reminded of how much she resembled Jennifer.

* * *

 

Duke, Winters and Mil made their way through town. As they walked past a government building, one sign in particular caught his eye.

  
“Bureau of Inter-Species Registration,” Duke read aloud. “Exactly what does that mean?” he questioned Winters. “You have mermaids and centaurs and what-have-you?” he grinned.

  
“No,” Mil answered, her dark eyes flashing. “It’s a fancy term for a Halfling registry.”

  
“I beg your pardon?” Duke asked, thunderstruck. “Do you mean to tell me you have to be ‘registered’ with your government if one of your parents isn’t from this side?”

  
“Unfortunately—yes,” Winters replied. “Many times, Halflings are often placed for adoption in the Outworld.”

  
Duke felt his blood boil-or it would have if he had blood—and he stopped in his tracks. Winters and Mil turned to look at him.

  
“What is the matter?” Winters asked.

  
“I’m half tempted to let William inflict Troubles on you people,” Duke said heatedly. “It’d be no less than you deserve—you broom off ‘undesirable’ children to the other side because they were unfortunate enough to not be a full part of your precious pure bloodline,” he snarled, furious now. “I had friends who were Halflings, for your information, and they were two of the best people I’ve ever known!”

  
“Duke—not everyone here feels that way,” Winters replied. “But it has always been this way. And they are not singled out in public or mistreated in any way.”

  
“No, but I bet the best they can get for work is menial jobs,” Duke retorted.

  
“That isn’t true,” Winters spoke.

  
“Is that so? Tell me, Officer Winters—how many registered Halflings are on the police force?” Duke asked and Winters and Mil fell quiet.

  
“Your silence speaks volumes,” Duke answered, and turned and walked away.

  
They walked in silence for a bit, and then Duke spoke again.

  
“That was out of line-I apologize for saying you deserve to be Troubled,” he muttered. “But I won’t apologize for saying that you’re wrong to single out Halflings.”

  
“We feel much the same, Duke,” Mil replied. “But change takes time.”

  
“That it does,” Duke agreed. “Considering you live for centuries while my former people have a very finite lifespan in comparison, your changes could take quite a while.”

  
They reached what looked to be an elevated train station, and Winters entered the coordinates of the Niacene Caverns on a large touchscreen, which indicated their train would leave from Level Three.

  
They entered the elevator and approached the train. The doors opened, and Winters entered, followed by Duke, who suddenly found himself ensconced in an invisible barrier of some sort!

  
“ _Alert-foreign body detected. Alert-foreign body detected_ ,” the feminine electronic voice repeated as Duke struggled to get free, but failed.

  
Winters approached another touchscreen, tapping in information on it, and the barrier around Duke released.

  
“What was that?” he demanded.

  
“That’s a micro-screen,” Mil explained. “It’s to prevent someone from smuggling aether on public transport.”

  
“Do you have aether on you?” Winters questioned.

  
“Aether comprises my physical makeup-it’s all I am,” Duke replied, surprising himself with the term. “How did you convince the—thing—to let me go?”

  
“I told the system that you were in our custody,” Winters said.

  
“That must be why William and Meredith took Mathis here with them,” Duke said as the train began to pull out of the station. “They knew they couldn’t get aether in otherwise.”

  
“Why would they do that?” Mil questioned.

  
“They’re using him like a drug mule,” Duke explained, seeing their blank looks.

  
“What’s a drug mule?” Mils asked him. “You think they have an animal with them?”

  
“No, I’m not referring to an animal in this instance. In my world, dope smugglers will ingest latex balloons filled with illegal drugs into their bodies to be retrieved at a later time. William and Meredith have been stuffing a man from my world, Mark Mathis, full of aether in much the same fashion.”

  
“So they could bring it here without anyone being the wiser,” Winters mused. “Clever. But how do they get it out of him?”

  
“I would imagine they’ll get it out of him when he erupts,” Duke sighed.

  
“How do you know this?”

  
“Because the same thing happened to me,” Duke told them. “When I was a regular man, William’s old girlfriend Mara did me the same way, and I ended up Troubling nearly everyone in Haven who wasn’t Troubled already-terrible, dangerous ones.”

  
“Like the organ harvester you referred to earlier,” Winters murmured.

  
“Much like that, only worse. One girl’s touch caused anything to explode, and I do mean anything. A man’s built-up anger became an entity unto itself and was flaying people alive in the dark,” Duke went on, seeing their aghast faces. “That is why we have to find Mathis before he goes off. You have _no_ idea what’s coming your way. As advanced as your world is, I can’t imagine it will be any easier for you to deal with the Troubles than it was for us.”

  
“The Troubles don’t affect us,” Winters said primly, and then remembered the earlier events of the day. “Usually.”

  
“Councilman Daughton would beg to differ, I think,” Duke remarked.

  
“We’ll help you in any way we can,” Mil smiled, and she put her hand on Duke’s.

  
“When we do find him—what then?” Winters asked.

  
“I can summon Howard, and he and the Armory controller, Vince, will contain the three of them. Mathis can erupt there, and all the Troubles will be contained; and Vince has said he can also hold William and Meredith there—unless you want them.”

  
“William is wanted for questioning on other incidents,” Winters replied. ”So we keep our citizens, and you can return to your realm with yours.”

  
“Unfortunately, there’s no going home for us,” Duke sighed. “You see, Vince and I sacrificed ourselves to help end the Troubles back home. We don’t have a home to go anymore—we died in our world.”

  
“So you’re stuck here,” Mil answered quietly.

  
“We're not exactly welcome here either, if the Councilman’s reaction and the micro-screen was anything to go by,” Duke replied, looking out of the window.

  
“But you’re—not bad,” Mil said, sitting down alongside him, and Duke gazed at her. “What?”

  
“You remind me very much of someone I knew back in Haven,” Duke told her. “She was one of your Halflings.”

  
“Was she of the best people you ever knew?” she quoted him, and Duke nodded. “What happened to her?”

  
“She died opening the door to the Void to put William out of our world,” Duke said.

  
“I’m sorry,” Mil soothed.

  
“Me too,” Duke answered.

  
“Which of her parents was from our side?”

  
“I don’t know. She never knew—but I suspect Howard does,” Duke mused, thinking.

  
“We’re nearly there,” Winters spoke.

  
“ _Stop Three-Twenty-Seven, Hindsgate, Hailbroughton and The Niacene Caverns,”_ the electronic voice intoned over the loudspeaker system as the train glided to a stop in the station, and the doors opened.

  
They emerged from the station, and Winters directed them towards the Enforcement Station, where they retrieved climbing gear and suitable clothing.

  
“So what are these caverns like?” Duke asked as they loaded their gear into a vehicle and set out for the mountainous region a few miles away.

  
“Cold and damp,” Mil answered. “However, the stalactite and stalagmite formations in the Grand Ballroom are truly spectacular. My favorite as a kid was the White Chandelier-it’s a cluster of stalactites that resemble a big chandelier that hangs right in the center of the cavern. You go down into the caverns, and it opens up into the Grand Ballroom,” she said, spreading her hands for effect.

  
“Well, I doubt William and Meredith will be right there at the entrance,” Duke told her.

  
“How will we know where to look for them?” Winters questioned.

  
“I can feel aether, because I’m made from it,” Duke explained. “I haven’t been able to feel exactly where Mathis is located, something was preventing it.”

  
“Perhaps distance,” Winters mused. “You may have been too far away.”

  
“Maybe so,” Duke said. “Now that I’m a little closer, I can hope that I can find him before he goes off.”

  
Winters and Mil showed their badges to the security forces, and they entered the caverns.

  
Duke could see why it was called the Grand Ballroom, and that the White Chandelier did indeed resemble an enormous lighting fixture, especially with the lighting that had been installed to illuminate it, and he glanced around at the several tunnels that ran in all directions.

  
“Are you getting anything?” Winters asked him.

  
“No,” Duke said. “I’m going to have to go exploring.”

  
“That isn’t advisable—you could get lost very easily in here,” Mil protested.

  
“You guys forget—I’m not a human,” Duke smiled. “Don’t-don’t freak out, okay?”

  
“What are you going to do?” Winters asked.

  
Duke closed his eyes and let himself return to his natural form, and Winters and Mil both gasped.

  
“Don’t be afraid,” Howard spoke, making them both jump further. “See what you can find, Duke.”

  
The black spheres flew off, small groupings of them each taking a tunnel, flying swiftly down into the earth.

  
Ahead in one far-off tunnel, Duke began to feel the pull of fellow aether, and he dispatched some of the spheres to return to Howard.

  
“There,” Winters pointed to a sphere that launched itself at Howard, who cradled it in his hand a moment.

  
“This way,” he gestured to a tunnel, and the sphere flew back.

  
The trio ran swiftly behind, through twists and turns of the natural rock, going further and further into it until they came to a little area, where the cyclone of aether that had been Duke was re-assembling itself until he stood there once more.

 

“If I hadn’t seen that, I would never have believed it,” Winters gasped, Mil’s own mouth gaping open.

  
“William has two goons he uses that can also do this,” Duke warned. “But they don’t think for themselves, he does it for them.”

  
“Which way do we go now?” Howard asked, and Duke gestured to the tunnel before them.

  
“There,” he said.

  
Just as he spoke, the group felt a strange rumbling under their feet, and Duke looked dismayed, as did Howard.

  
“Oh, no,” Duke breathed. “We’re too late!”

  
“Get down, now!” Howard ordered Winters and Mil, pushing them to ground, he and Duke helping to shield them with their bodies as a torrent of aether exploded from the tunnel before them, a whirling mass that launched itself outward.

  
Mil and Winters both cried out, and Duke realized that they’d been hit with a Trouble, and he pulled Mil closer to him as the aether-cloud passed overhead.

  
“Can’t you do something?” she cried over the roaring din.

  
“Not now,” Duke said as the last of them flew out of the cave. They got up, following swiftly along behind the cloud, watching from the entrance as it swooped and swirled through the skies, taking aim for the city that lay below in the valley.

  
“What can we do?” Mil asked, near tears, and she put her hand in Duke’s, who held it.

  
“Same as we did back home,” he replied, glancing at Howard, who nodded.

  
“We capture William and Meredith,” Howard said.

  
“We need to get back to the cave,” Winters urged. 

  
“Most likely, they’ve gone back through the thinny,” Howard replied.

  
“They’ll escape into your world again,” Mil protested.

  
“They can’t-there’s no other openings to the other side,” Duke said. “Their only options are either return here to the cavern—or stay in the Void.”

  
“I’ll order guards placed at every known portal to the Void,” Winters said, taking out his keypad.

  
“But what can we do for now?” Mil asked softly, thinking of all the people that were now being afflicted with Troubles.

  
“For right now, we’ll do like we did back home—we help people,” Duke reassured her, and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “We fix one Trouble at a time.”

  
“Do you know how to do that?”

  
Duke smiled.

  
“I had very good teachers,” he said.


	11. Ch-Ch-Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke tries to deal with both the aftermath of the Trouble explosion--and helping Winters and Mil deal with their new 'problems'.

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 11** _   
_**"Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes"** _

 

_**4 April** _

  
_It took us a long time to get back to Alt-Nathan's apartment. Every officer in Enforcement was out pursuing people whose Troubles had activated. As I feared would happen, this only resulted in triggering even more Troubles in a chain reaction when they panicked._

  
_To say that Chief Reynolds was unhappy with our performance was an understatement. He said that the Council planned on issuing warrants for both mine and Howard's arrest in the morning, saying that we had helped William do this._

  
_The hospitals are overflowing, and their doctors are doing what they can, but as I figured, they really don't know what's going on. I do; I just have to figure out how to catch two people who really, really don't want to get caught. I'm sure they've figured out by now they can't get back to my old world-and if they stay in the Void long enough, they're going to be desperate enough to try to get back here._

  
"Here," Winters, or Nathan, told Mils, offering her a cup. "How are you feeling?"

  
"Kind of shaky," Mil answered. "One of those things--stung me."

  
"Yeah, me too," Winters replied. "Can you--fix us?" he asked Duke.

  
"I can," Duke replied. "Unfortunately, till it turns active, I can't pull the aether out. Or at least I couldn't in my world."

  
"But we're not from your world," Mil smiled gently.

  
Duke set his teacup down and reached across to her, taking Mil's hands in his.

  
"That's true," he admitted. "All right, I'm willing to try--just relax, okay?"

  
"All right," she murmured.

  
Duke placed a hand on Mil's forehead, focusing intently on finding the aether that had stung her. He sensed it, and tried to call it forth, but it just seemed to burrow in deeper.  
Mil whimpered in pain.

  
"Stop it now!" Winters yelled at him, and Duke ceased his efforts immediately.

  
"I'm sorry--it hasn't activated yet," he apologized. "If it had, I could have retrieved it."

  
"Do you at least know what it is?" Mil asked, wincing. "That hurt," she groaned, rubbing at her breastbone. "Like it was trying to tear my heart out. Did you have a Trouble like that where you're from--Harbor?"

  
"Haven," Duke corrected gently. "Maybe. There was a book my family had kept through the centuries that recorded the Troubles they'd--ended, but I don't have it. I'm hoping maybe Vince does somewhere in the Armory."

  
"What is this 'Armory' thing you and Howard keep talking about?" Winters asked.

  
"It's not actually a barn, it's an armory now," Duke told the pair. "Originally, it was a barn that Dr. Cross and Howard came up with to keep Mara in."

  
"Mara Cross," Mil said. "Yes, we learned about her in the academy, about her experiments on Otherworlders with William. Is she still there in your world?"

  
"No, she's dead," Duke replied. "But her handiwork lingered on, believe me."

  
"Did she make you--your Trouble? Are you a Trouble?”

  
“No, I was an actual, living, breathing person,” Duke said. "Actually, her father was responsible for my Trouble. He Troubled one of my ancestors; designed it so that we collected aether from the Troubled, in order to help him gain power."

  
He thought of something. "Hey--Howard told me that you two would be able to help me in ways that my friends back home couldn't," Duke began. "What do you think he meant by that?"

  
"Ask him," Winters answered. "We're just average citizens."

  
"Yes, but your average is a lot different than our average," Duke replied. "Can you teleport yourselves?"

  
"Not without the proper equipment," Winters smiled.

  
"Fly? Walk through walls?"

  
"Nope, sorry," Mil smiled. "Maybe he just meant technologically."

  
"No, no, he referred to you two specifically," Duke thought aloud, pacing as he did when he was thinking. "I was just curious as to why."

  
_I don't have any clue what this loony is talking about_ , Duke heard Winters say, and looked up.

  
"What did you say?" he asked.

  
"I said nothing," Winters said.

  
"No, you did. You said you don't know what I'm talking about," Duke protested. "And you called me a loony."

  
"I didn't say it," Winters snapped.

  
"No, but you--" Mil spoke, and then gasped.

  
"I _thought_ it," Winters trailed off. "You both heard my thoughts?"

  
"Is-is that it?" Duke questioned. "You're _prescient_?"

  
Winters sat down hard on the couch.

  
“Mil and I were both first placed together when we were at the academy,” he began. “We were told that we both tested very high on our mental aptitude scores, and it had been determined that we would be a good match as officers.”

  
“And are you?”

  
“Yes, we’ve always had an excellent working relationship,” Mil said.

  
“So you guys have always been partners,” Duke stated, and Winters and Mil nodded agreement. “You talk to each other a lot?”

  
“Not really,” Winters answered. “We’ve always been comfortable with each other enough to not have to gab all the time.”

  
“But we always seem to know what each other’s in the mood to eat,” Mil said slowly. “And what the other’s thinking at any given time.”

  
“That’s just from working together,” Winters put in. “Any long-time enforcement team will tell you they work like that.”

  
“I don’t think it’s just that; I think it’s because you two can read each other’s minds,” Duke replied. “I just don’t think you’ve realized that’s what you’ve been doing until now.”

  
He gazed at the pair. _But now I can read your thoughts too_ , he directed mentally at them.

  
“I _heard_ you,” Mil breathed.

  
“So did I,” Winters answered.

  
“Very good,” Howard spoke from the doorway, scaring all three.

  
“You really need to learn to knock or something,” Duke got out. “But since you’re here, would you mind explaining the cryptic meaning of what they can do that Nate and Audrey couldn’t?”

  
“You three have just witnessed it for yourselves,” Howard told them patiently. “Nathaniel and Millicent are indeed prescient. It’s not terribly unusual here, but not to the levels that they are.”

  
He sat down in the chair opposite the group.

  
“Millicent and Nathaniel were part of a select group of children that were chosen specifically because of their prescient abilities,” he began. “We were all a part of the program.”

  
“Who is we?” Duke questioned.

  
“Myself, Dr.Spheeris—“

  
“You mean Dr. Antonia Spheeris, the enforcement academy’s doctor?” Mil asked.

  
Howard nodded.

  
“And the doctors Cross,” Howard finished.

  
“You mean Charlotte Cross,” Duke said, and Howard nodded.

  
“And Douglas Cross,” Howard added quietly, glancing up at Duke. “You may know him better as Croatoan.”

  
“Oh, this just keeps on getting better and better,” Duke groaned, wondering if aether-men could get headaches, because it certainly felt like he had one coming now.

  
“So they _have_ been experimenting with aether,” Winters said bitterly. “All this time, all this—“he angrily chucked a glass at the wall, where it shattered. “The Council sits up there on their high horse and proclaims aether to be bad, it’s terrible, and this whole time, they’ve been running experiments on their own people. And you _knew_ about it and said nothing!”

  
“Howard kind of was in the position where he couldn’t say anything,” Duke spoke up. “He was busy helping Dr. Cross keep Mara under control. But I would definitely like to know what went down between then and now,” he finished pointedly.

  
Howard exhaled heavily, leaning back in his chair.

  
“It began what would be a hundred years before the Troubles began in Haven,” Howard began. “The Void had just been opened, and we had been making explorations of it. Aether was discovered—along with an opening that we realized led straight into another, completely different reality, much like ours—save they were woefully behind us, technologically.”

  
“What year was that?” Duke asked.

  
“It was early, very early—in fact, the only residents of the area at that time were the Mik’Maq and Powhatan tribes, when Haven was still known as Tuiwiuok,” he continued. “The next time we came through the thinny, we discovered that it was being settled by the early founders of what would come to be called Haven.”

  
“So what happened with the aether, Dr. Howard?” Mil asked.

  
“We had been testing on animals,” Howard said. “But Douglas Cross felt that we were moving too slowly on it as a cure for illnesses here, as he and Dr. Cross’ daughter was very ill, so he—did what he did, and she not only got better, she thrived. She began to exhibit extraordinary abilities, and at that time, the aether had not been found to be harmful,” he went on.

  
“So if they dosed one kid and they didn’t die, why stop there?” Duke asked his tone cynical. “So you rounded yourselves up a fresh batch of test subjects and went to town. You really are a piece of work.”

  
“I do understand how you must feel about all this,” Howard said sincerely. “We tested six children: Nathaniel Winters, Millicent Chambers, Brandon Gilbraith, Regina Meadows—and William Durst and Meredith McKay,” he finished.

  
“So that’s what you meant when you said William was like an athlete who’d used steroids,” Duke stated.

  
“William is different than the others-because Mara dosed him again, to strengthen his abilities. Once Croatoan and Mara discovered how to truly unlock aether’s abilities, they soon set to work. They wouldn’t do it here; the aether at that time would only work on a certain type of our people. And so Mara and William came to Haven, until they were stopped.”

  
“You banished William and Croatoan to the void, and Mara in the Barn,” Duke finished. “And so began the Troubles,” he commented.

  
“What do you mean, type?” Mil questioned. “Aether and Troubles couldn’t have affected us before then.”

  
And suddenly the answer came rushing at Duke.

  
“But it could if you were Halflings,” he said.

  
Winters and Mil looked at Howard, their mouths hanging open.

  
“Is that _true_?” she asked. “W-We’re— _Halflings_?”

  
Howard nodded.

  
“Yes. However, William is not—that’s what makes him so dangerous, because he’s been heavily dosed with aether, whereas yours merely enhanced your senses of perception.”

“Why don’t we remember any of that?” Mil asked.

  
“They probably wiped your memories of it,” Duke commented, seeing from Howard’s expression he’d hit the nail on the head. “What about the other children, this Brandon Gilbraith, and Regina Meadows?”

  
“Brandon Gilbraith is dead,” Winters said. “He killed himself-because he always claimed he could hear voices in his head,” he finished accusingly. “He could never make them stop.”

  
Duke’s mind flicked back to the two criminals Ezra and Tobias, to the time they tried to steal what he was delivering for a client by stealing _The Cape Rouge_ and having Ezra read his mind.

  
_Howard was there then also,_ he thought, glancing at the man, who gazed back at him steadily. _We need to have an exceedingly long talk when we get out of here, Howard._

  
“Regina Meadows—you mean _the_ Regina Meadows-The Amazing Regina?” Mil questioned.

  
“Who’s she?” Duke asked.

  
“She’s famous here. She’s a mentalist, she can read people’s minds,” Winters informed him. “Now I see how she does it.”

  
“I realize this has all been a big shock,” Howard told the group.

  
“Well, there’s the understatement of the millennium,” Duke cracked.

  
“What do you think we should do next, Dr. Howard?” Winters asked.

  
“We need to get into contact with Regina Meadows,” Howard told them. “With the three of you together, we should be able to entrap William and Meredith—and put an end to the Troubles once and for all.”

 

_Easier said than done, Howie._


	12. Can't Find My Way Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke goes on the run with Winters and Mil

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 12** _   
_**"Can't Find My Way Home"** _

 

 

**_ 04 April _ **

  
_Well, after Howie dropped his little bombshell and pretty much shattered life as they knew it for Nate and Mil, he suggested we not sit around and wait for Reynolds to cart us all off to the hoosegow, which I thought a very sensible idea. So we split._

  
_We are currently hiding out in small cabin in the woods, not too far from the Armory. Reminds me a lot of the Chief's hunting place; that is, if the Chief’s cabin had been built like a miniature state-of-the-art luxury townhome._

* * *

 

 

Duke woke early; it was just beginning to gray outside, and he crept quietly out of bed, stretching. They'd arrived to the cabin only a few hours before, and had quickly hidden their vehicle beneath a blanket that mirrored its environment, making it all but invisible.

  
Winters and Mil were still asleep, and he moved silently through the cabin as he brewed a pot of coffee before going outside, ensconcing himself on in a corner of the porch, wrapped up in a blanket he’d snitched off the bed as the sun peered over the horizon.

  
Vince appeared.

  
"Howard told me what happened," he said.

  
"I'm afraid I wasn't very effective," Duke mumbled. "I failed yet again, Vince." He looked up, his face grieved. "I wouldn't blame you if you decided to chuck me in with all the other aether you have locked up.” He sipped his coffee. “I screwed up, Vince, big-time.”

  
"I wouldn't do that to you, Duke," Vince said, sitting down. "It is all not your fault; there is more than enough blame to lie on all our shoulders. You delayed searching for William and Meredith to cure a dangerous Trouble, and that is _never_ wrong, no matter which world we’re in.”

  
He paused for a moment, thinking, and then spoke again. "I believe the problem is, we are still thinking of dealing with things as we did in Haven. This isn't Haven," he continued.

  
"A lot of things remind me of it though," Duke smiled faintly. “I never knew how similar this world and its people would be to ours.”

  
"Yes, it is similar—especially Millicent," Vince murmured. "I too have noticed that there is a marked resemblance between her and Jennifer.”

  
Duke nodded. “I noticed that too. Do you think they’re related?”

  
“I do not know. Howard has gone to seek out Regina Meadows, so that question will have to keep until his return,” Vince said. There was another pause, and then: “I have been speaking with Croatoan."

  
"He must be thrilled with this turn of events," Duke said bitterly. "He's probably pacing around in there hoping William and Meredith show up bearing a cake with a file in it." He lolled his head over to look at Vince. "So what did he have to say?"

  
"That we've been going about this all wrong," Vince replied.

  
"Of course he did,” Duke said into his coffee cup. “I’m sure he even graciously volunteered his services to help stop the Troubles."

  
"He made mention of it," Vince remarked briskly. "I told him we would only need his help in an advisory capacity. He is accurate on one point, however--we have been using the same approach to Troubles that we always have in our world.”

  
“And it’s not working,” Duke noted.

  
“No, it is not. We are going to have to write our own playbook here, Duke. As we told you before, these are uncharted waters."

  
"Well, you know what they say about uncharted waters," Duke told him. "Here, there be monsters."

  
The front door to the cabin opened, and Mil emerged. She looked at Vince with a startled expression, and then glanced at Duke, who nodded reassurance.

  
"It's okay, he's one of us," Duke greeted. "Mil, this is Vince. Vince Teagues, this is Officer Millicent Chamberlain."

  
"Pleased to meet you, Officer Chamberlain," Vince introduced himself, shaking hands with Mil. "I am the Controller of the Armory."

  
Mil nodded acknowledgement, pulling her shawl around her a little tighter, shivering in the early morning chill.

  
"So what did Doctor Douglas Cross, alias Croatoan, have to say about how we catch William?" Duke asked.

  
"He actually agreed with Agent Howard's plan of reuniting Millicent and Nathaniel with Regina Meadows," Vince replied. "Between the three of them and yourself, you can open a new door."

  
"No. No, no, no--we all know what happened the last time we opened a door into the Void!" Duke protested.

  
"What happened?" Mil asked.

  
"Many things happened, not the least of which someone died," Vince answered gently.

  
"Jennifer wasn't just 'someone," Duke shot back. "She was a Halfling--like you and Nate in there."

  
"So was Dave," Vince replied mildly. "And we would not be opening a door into the Void this time. There are other layers to time and space outside of the reality that you know."

  
"The Mendelssohn Project," Mil said.

  
"The what project?" Duke asked.

  
"The Mendelssohn Project--we learned about it in school when I was a little kid," Mil told them. "Dr. Christophe Mendelssohn founded it on the principle that there are multiple layers to what we perceive as reality."

  
"We've had scientists and physicists with similar beliefs in our world too," Duke said.

  
"Einstein, Sagan, Hawking," Mil rattled off, and then smiled shyly, seeing Duke's impressed expression. "Otherworld History's always been a fascinating subject to me," she confessed. "At any rate, Dr. Mendelssohn had constructed a device that could open doorways into these other realities," she continued. "And then something terrible happened, and the project was abandoned."

  
"What happened?" Duke asked.

  
Mil shook her head. "They never said. There have been many theories-that the project cost too much, that there really wasn't anything on the other side of the door except for the Void and your world, that the next world was even more primitive and savage than yours was, all sorts of reasons," she ticked off on her fingers. “But none were ever proven.”

  
"What's your theory on why it was abandoned?"

  
"I think it was because Dr. Mendelssohn disappeared," Mil told them. "I think he was kidnapped by aether extremists."

  
"I've heard that term aether extremist before, from the councilman," Duke said. "What does he mean by that?"

  
"Meredith is one of them," Mil said. "They believe that aether can be channeled, that it'll render them--immortal; give them absolute power. They believe they’re creating the next step in the evolutionary ladder. And then of course, there's always the criminal element who want to use the doorway for fame and fortune, to use aether to give them--superpowers."

  
Duke thought back to Hailey Colton, who also believed it to be a superpower; and had to tragically find out the hard way there was a reason they were called Troubles, and he closed his eyes against the memory.

  
“What’s the matter?” Mil questioned.

  
“I was thinking of a girl back in Haven who also felt that her Trouble was some sort of superpower,” Duke said softly. “Troubles are not superpowers; there’s always some sort of ‘catch’ to having one. Her power was that she could walk through walls; but not bars.”

  
“What happened?”

  
“She rematerialized halfway through an iron fence,” Vince explained gently. “She died.”

  
In the distance, Duke could hear a faint humming sound, and Mil looked worried.

  
“Come back inside,” she urged.

 

“What’s that noise?” Duke asked.

  
“Surveillance drones,” Mil said. “They’re probably searching for us.”

  
“I’m sure of it,” Vince muttered.

  
As they went back inside, Duke caught a glimpse of something that looked like an old-fashioned aerial antenna flying through the air, making a faint humming sound. It spotted the cabin, and headed straight for it, like a bee returning to the hive, splitting off from one antenna into four.

  
“Nathan!” Mil called out, and Winters bustled out of his bedroom, instantly awake.

  
“Drones,” he said, glancing out of the window. He picked up his pad, and tapped in something.

  
Instantly, there materialized a family in the cabin-a man and a woman, along with two children and a dog appeared, walking and chattering around the cabin. The man walked over to the door, allowing the dog outside.

  
“Just stay against the walls,” he urged Vince and Duke softly.

  
Duke pressed himself against the wall and Vince vanished, making Winters gasp, and one of the drones made a clicking sound, moving around to that side of the house, peering in the windows.

  
Winters gestured, and they flattened themselves behind the furniture as he pressed the tablet again.

  
The dog barked, seeming to chase something in the woods and the drones flew off to investigate briefly, before finishing their sweep and flying off over the woods, and the family vanished.

  
Duke sagged with relief, and helped Mil to her feet.“Nice trick,” he said.

  
“It’s a holo-sequence,” Winters replied. “I built it to use as a blind when we were tracking that group of aether extremists last year. The drones they use in remote regions like this aren’t as sophisticated as the ones in the city-they wouldn’t have been fooled by that for a second.” He glanced around. “What happened to the other man? Where did he go?”

  
“Vince, you can come out now,” Duke called out, and Vince reappeared once more.

  
“Clever thinking, Officer Winters,” Vince said.

  
“Thank you,” Winters replied. “Mr.—“

  
“Teagues, Vincent Teagues,” Vince answered. “I am the Armory Controller.”

  
“My ride,” Duke put in. “He’s also the one that keeps Croatoan out of mischief.”

  
“Dr. Howard said that you could also confine the two that created all the problems in the city,” Winters spoke, moving toward the coffeemaker.

  
“Yes. Provided we catch up with them soon,” Vince replied. “How are matters progressing in Newhaven?”

  
Duke looked surprised at Vince’s remark, and Vince smiled lightly.

  
“The city does have a name, you know,” he said.

  
“Didn’t realize it was _that_ name,” Duke answered, shaking his head.

  
“You can see it for yourself, Mr. Teagues,” Winters uttered and pressed a button. A television screen appeared on the wall.

  
On it, a newscast was taking place, and Winters’ and Mil’s pictures appeared on the screen behind her.

  
“In a shocking turn of events, two Enforcement officers have been revealed to have been involved with the aether extremist group known as Spiral,” the newscaster was saying, and the pictures shifted to an image of the Guard tattoo.

  
Vince’s face darkened.

  
“The Guard is _not_ an extremist group,” he growled.

  
“That’s a matter of opinion,” Duke remarked, getting a dirty look from Vince. “And that isn’t what they’re saying about them here,” Duke replied. “In this world, they may very well be extremists.”

  
Out of the corner of his eye, Duke saw Winters reaching for a weapon, and he trained it on Vince and Duke.

  
“Are you involved with Spiral?” he demanded.

  
“Take it easy there, Nate,” Duke reproved gently. “We’re not the bad guys here.”

  
“As you said, that’s a matter of opinion. All I know is you and Howard and this man showed up and then everything went to hell afterwards,” Winters argued. “Now people are being infected with Troubles, we’re hunted fugitives and on top of it, we find out we’re Halflings?”

  
“For a guy who was all for change and equality for Halflings you sure seem to be upset by finding out that you’re one yourself,” Duke noted. “Why? Are you afraid of what your families will say?”

  
“We don’t have families—we’re orphans,” Mil answered.

  
“Yet another reason we were chosen, I’m sure,” Winters snapped.

  
“We are not part of this group on this side,” Vince assured him. “In our world, we were known as the Guard—we looked after the Troubled, helped to protect them, shield them from people who would hurt them.”

  
“Look, everybody calm down, this isn’t helping,” Duke urged gently. He could see Mils was upset, and he could also feel something else—that her Trouble was just about to activate.

  
“I-I don’t feel very well,” Mil mumbled, and staggered.

  
“You’re doing something to her, stop it!” Winters ordered Duke.

  
“I’m not doing anything-her Trouble’s activating!” Duke yelled back, and made a grab for the weapon, which discharged, the shot hitting him in the chest.

  
Mil screamed, and then it felt as though time had come to a standstill around them. Winters seemed frozen in place, his eyes wild, the weapon still smoking in his hand as Duke looked at Mil, glancing outside. On the porch, there was a robin frozen in the air as it lifted off the porch railing, a deer locked in mid-stride as it had bounded across the clearing.

  
“W-What’s the matter with him? Nathan? Nathan!” she cried, grabbing for her own weapon and pointing it at Duke.

  
“That’s your Trouble—it has gone active,” Duke told her, keeping his hands up in front of him. “It seems as though you can suspend time.”

  
“Why aren’t you two suspended?” she asked, looking at Vince.

  
“We’re not people, my dear—not anymore,” he smiled.

  
“Okay, just take a deep breath, calm down,” Duke told her. “We’re not going to get anywhere like this. Trust me,” he soothed, stretching his hand out to her. “We are here to help, not hurt.”

  
“Nathan shot you—but you’re not bleeding,” she said.

  
Duke looked down at the bloodless wound in his chest, which had closed, leaving only a small hole in his shirt.

  
“As I told you, we are not living beings any longer—not living in the state that you would recognize,” Vince said gently. “Now, please—we want to help you.”

  
Mil studied them both a moment longer, and then nodded, placing the weapon she held in Duke’s hand, and Winters staggered as time began moving forward once more.

  
He looked at Duke curiously.

  
“I shot you,” he said. “Are you wearing armor?”

  
“No, I’m not,” Duke sighed. “And we’re not the enemy.”

  
“They want to help us,” Mil told him.

  
“What happened, what was that?” Winters asked. “I felt like I was suddenly moving through molasses, like I couldn’t move but just a millimeter at a time.”

  
“That would be Mil’s Trouble—you activated it with your histrionics,” Duke accused. “Troubles are activated by emotions—big emotions. There was a reason we kept telling you to be calm—so you wouldn’t be as likely to activate your Troubles.”

  
“Mil, I-I’m sorry,” Winters said, a hand on her shoulder.

  
“Actually, her Trouble could prove to be very beneficial to us,” Vince said. “If she can slow time that could give us the edge in capturing William and Meredith.”

  
“Depends on what his Trouble is,” Duke replied, gauging Winters.

  
“What do you mean, Duke?” Mil questioned.

  
“For every Trouble that does one thing, there’s another Trouble that does the complete opposite,” Duke replied.

  
“That means there’s someone out there who can speed up time then,” Winters said. “You think that’s me?”

  
Duke shrugged. “I don’t know. Until yours goes active, we won’t know what it is.”

  
“For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction,” Mil smiled. “Your Isaac Newton said that.”

  
“Perhaps Agent Howard will have some answers to all our questions,” Vince nodded at the vehicle approaching the cabin. “And then we see about finding Dr. Mendelssohn to provide the rest of them.”


	13. Gimme Shelter

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 13** _   
_**"Gimme Shelter"** _

 

**_ 05 April _ **

  
_Howard returned with Regina Meadows. How can I describe Ms. Meadows? I can think of a one-word description for her that I can't say in polite company, so I will offer up a code word as a substitute the one I am thinking of instead: Mara._

 

The vehicle came to a stop, and Howard climbed out, along with a tall, pale man who quickly opened the rear door, and a woman with short dark hair with a white streak swirling through the top of it emerged.

  
Her eyes swept over the little gathering on the porch, taking in the cabin, and rolled her eyes in distaste.

  
"Had I known we would be going out to the armpit of the world I would never have come," she said her voice rich and mellow. Her lips curled in a derisive smile. "But being whisked away in the middle of the night to a top-secret clandestine meeting with wanted fugitives? I could hardly refuse that."

  
She strolled confidently toward the porch, and Duke could see that Regina Meadows was a woman who was long accustomed to getting her way, and she kept her eyes on him as she climbed the steps until she was face-to-face with him.

  
Duke took her in. She had penetrating gray eyes, an aquiline nose and a full mouth. She was tall, almost six feet, and clearly her career as a mind-reader was going quite well, if the cut of the coat and her suit were anything to go by.

  
"You must be Mr. Crocker," she said. "Regina Meadows," she continued, extending a well-manicured hand.

  
"Nice to meet you," Duke replied, glancing at Winters and Mil, who seemed a little star-struck.

  
"I saw you perform last winter--it was amazing," Winters got out, stumbling over his statement, and Regina gave him a tight-lipped smile.

  
_He's got about as much game with girls as my Nathan does_ , Duke grinned to himself.

  
"This is my assistant, Edward," Regina waved at the pale man, who nodded to the group.

  
"Did you have any problems coming here?" Vince asked.

  
"We barely got away," Howard said dryly.

  
"Yes, it was most exciting," Regina put in, going into the cabin and coming to a stop in front of the fireplace, where she removed her coat, flinging it at Edward, who gently folded it and laid it on the back of the sofa. "Spiral made an attempt to kidnap me yesterday, and the police showed up and wanted to question me about you two this morning for some ungodly reason, and then the mysterious Mr. Howard pops up out of nowhere and offers me an escape," she continued.

  
"You remember him?" Nathan said.

  
"Never laid eyes on him until two hours ago,” Regina replied. “But it was better than being hauled down to some dreary little cubicle in the Enforcement station.”

  
"I can understand that," Duke replied, and Edward shot him a look as if to ask who Duke thought he was to dare to speak The Amazing Regina without being spoken to first.

"The police probably want to ask you about Nate and Mil is because you were a part of the little science experiment they were part of."

  
"Don't be ridiculous, I'm no one's science experiment," Regina snapped.

  
_Then why would Spiral want to kidnap you otherwise?_ Duke heard Nathan question her mentally, and Regina's eyes darted toward him.

  
"Because they're fanatics--they think I was exposed to aether as a child," Regina began. "That is what you're thinking, isn't it?" she asked, a look of puzzlement crossing her face.

  
"Yes," Winters answered.

  
_I'm afraid_ , Duke heard from Mil.

  
_Don't be_ , he reassured. _Show her she's not the only person who can read minds_.

  
Regina turned her eyes on Duke. He knew she was trying to read his mind, but he put up a wall against her, and she looked taken aback.

  
"I see you've had some experience with mentalists before, Mr. Crocker," she remarked.

  
"Call me Duke, everyone does," Duke said. "And yes, I've crossed paths with them before. And there's a reason Nathan was thinking that; because it's true."

  
"Don't be ridiculous," Regina laughed, but Howard interrupted.

  
"I'm afraid it is true, Ms. Meadows," he told her. "Please, sit down. I'm sure you all must have questions."

  
He removed a black spherical object from his pocket.

  
"What’s that--another aether core?" Duke asked.

  
"Actually, this is not an aether core," Howard replied. "This is stored memories--my own. I can prove to them that we are telling them the truth."

  
"Oh, goody, I love home movies," Regina said, her tone bored. "And memories can be altered, so there's no guarantee that what you're showing us is even true."

  
For answer, Howard pressed the sphere, and instantly they were seated in what looked like a laboratory, and ahead of them were a group of children.

  
Duke smiled, recognizing Mil instantly, her long dark hair hanging to her waist, and could see even then that Regina was the one in charge of the little group as they played marbles, with four people in lab coats behind them.

  
Instantly, he recognized Howard, Charlotte Cross, and Croatoan all conferring with one another as they watched a little blonde-haired girl focus her attention on an orange marble, and the mentally projected orb shot across the circle, knocking a blue marble clear across the room, the other children clapping when she did it.

  
"That's Meredith McKay," Howard spoke. "You likely recognize the other children as yourselves."

  
"Again, altered footage," Regina said.

  
"No, it isn't. Look at the seal on the footage," Winters protested, pointing to a watermark that had appeared as a painting on the wall. "That is a Level 10 security seal. There is no way this is altered. If this had been stolen, tampered with or altered in any way, we'd be up to our eyeballs in Enforcement the minute he opened that sphere. No," he breathed. "This is real."

  
"I received this directly from Councilman Daughton, who is one of the few people with that clearance," Howard told them as the images faded.

"Then why don't we remember any of this?" Regina demanded.

  
"Because your memories were altered when the project was abandoned," Howard said.

  
"We've been speculating on why it was abandoned," Duke said. "Care to put in your opines as to why it was stopped, Secret Agent Man?"

  
"If you're referring to the Mendelssohn Project, it was stopped when Christophe Mendelssohn was abducted," Howard stated.

  
"You were right, Mil," Duke told her, and she smiled timidly.

  
"Who took him, Spiral?" Regina asked.

  
"It's believed that they were responsible," Howard said.

  
"Why would they have kidnapped him? Daddy’s company was heavily involved with the project," Regina spoke. "It almost bankrupted them when the Council suspended the funding; he and the board would have paid any amount of money Spiral had asked for to get him back rather than have their funding yanked out from under them."

  
"I don't believe Spiral ever had any intention of returning Dr. Mendelssohn," Howard answered gravely. “And I am not entirely certain that he was kidnapped.”

  
“You think he went with them to be able to work outside of government supervision?” Vince questioned, and Howard nodded.

  
"Oh, _surely_ you don't believe in that 'Genus Initiative' rumor," Regina laughed, but Howard didn't smile. "That's just the sort of speculation that lab techs and conspiracy theorists dream up to talk about in hushed tones at coffee shops so they sound important."

  
"I do indeed," Howard replied.

  
"That it was possible to achieve a total fusion of man and aether? It's impossible."

  
"I'm afraid that it is quite possible, Ms. Meadows," Vince put in. "It's been achieved."

  
"When was it achieved? That would have dominated the news for months," Regina pointed out. “And even if it had been underground or listed as top secret-I grew up with some of our most noted scientific minds coming over for dinner on a regular basis-I still would have known.”

  
"Because it didn't happen in this world," Vince stated, and Regina laughed out loud.

  
“Surely you don't expect me to believe the talking monkeys in Otherworld did it?" she hooted, and Duke glared at her. "All right, then--where's your proof?"

  
Vince pointed at Duke, who smirked at her.

  
“Seriously?” she asked, getting up and going towards Duke. “How did they do it then?” she went on, crossing her arms across her chest, looking Duke over closely.

  
“I couldn’t tell you,” Duke said. “All I know is when I was a human, I was Troubled.”

  
“Duke’s Trouble was that his had been specially designed to collect other Troubles,” Vince spoke. “When Dr. Cross was sentenced into the Void, he emerged in Otherworld, intending on collecting the aether from Troubled people, but could not. So he designed a Trouble that could do it for him.”

  
“An ancestor of yours, no doubt,” Regina mused, all seriousness now.

  
Duke nodded. “I had five hundred years’ worth of Troubles. Five hundred may not seem that long to you, but it’s a really long time to my people.”

  
“And that was handed down genetically through your line until it came to you,” Regina mused. “And then what happened to change all that?”

  
“Croatoan’s--Dr. Cross' daughter Mara surfaced, and she tweaked my Trouble, so that I ended up expelling them,” Duke said. “When I did, we found out that all the Troubles my family had stored up had altered to the point to where even your people could be affected by them.”

  
Regina looked startled at that.

  
“So are you responsible for all—“

  
“No, I am not,” Duke replied, glancing at Winters’ stormy face. “I came to try to stop William and Meredith from unleashing those Troubles, but I was too late.”

  
“I-I’m not understanding this,” Winters spoke. “If you unleashed those Troubles, how could you get them back?”

  
“Because of the fusion,” Howard explained. “Duke was so infused with aether at the time of his death, he literally bonded with it. He can control it now. Or he’ll be able to—once he fully learns how to.”

  
“Which was the goal of the Genus Initiative,” Regina finished, and touched Duke. “You certainly feel solid enough.”

  
“When I want to be,” Duke said evenly, a little offended at being touched without his permission, and she withdrew her hand.

  
“I apologize,” she said. “ _That_ I did hear from you,” she gave him a small smile. “But that still doesn’t explain what I’m doing here.”

  
“And why we’re suspected of being in with Spiral,” Mil piped up.

  
“That story on the news is a ruse,” Howard told them. “Vincent and I have had a very lengthy meeting with the Council. It was decided that Nathan and Millicent would be accused of suspicion in the Aether bombing, in the hopes that Spiral will soon try to contact them.”

  
“Why would they?” Winters interrogated.

  
“Because we have let out just enough information about the fact that you were part of the Mendelssohn Project to make sure it hit the Contrawebs,” Howard informed them.  
“Do you mean the bad guys here have their own internet?” Duke asked.

  
“And it’s _very_ difficult to access,” Regina remarked.

  
“Why?” Duke asked.

  
“The Contraweb is legally protected as a means of business communications,” she laughed. “I don’t know how Marcus Corvier ever managed to put that over on the High Council by saying that smuggling should be recognized as a legitimate business, but he did.”

  
“Well, that would’ve made my old job a lot easier back home,” Duke mused, and Regina shot him an amused look.

  
“I had the feeling you weren’t just a lab monkey,” she grinned. “I’m willing to wager you were quite a handful in your world, Duke Crocker.”

  
She swung back to face Howard.

  
“But that still doesn’t explain why we’re having this little class reunion,” she commented.

  
“We feel that with your abilities and theirs combined along with Duke’s control of the aether, you can open a doorway into the Aetherworld.”

  
“Aetherworld is not a real realm,” Winters protested.

  
“I thought the Void was where you found aether,” Duke said, puzzled.

  
“Aether must come from somewhere,” Regina said.

  
“Nathan—my friend back in my world—had said it just seemed to ooze from the rocks in a cave there,” Duke told them.

  
“It’s believed that aether leeches into the Void from somewhere else, because no source of where it actually grows and develops has ever been found in the Void,” Howard replied.

  
“So that was Croatoan’s end game,” Duke guessed. “He wanted to be able to in the words of Jim Morrison ‘break on through to the other side’. With an entire world of aether at someone’s disposal—“

  
“There would be nothing to stop them,” Winters finished.

  
A light flashed on Winters’ pad, and he glanced at it.

  
“Company coming,” he said. “I set up an alarm beacon on the road yesterday so we’d know if somebody was coming here. But it’s not Enforcement.” He glanced again at the pad. “And they’re using a jamming device.”

  
“Someone who doesn’t want their movements tracked,” Regina commented. “Sounds like your little information leak worked.”

  
“Let’s hope the rest of our plan works as well,” Vince said as a large van-like vehicle came to a stop and three people climbed out.

  
Winters went to the door, opening it cautiously.

  
“Help you?” he asked.

  
For answer, the two men and the woman with them all turned up their sleeves, the Guard maze coming to light beneath the ultra violet glow from their pads.

  
“I think it’s us that are here to help you,” one of the men said.

 

_Seems to me I’ve heard that song before._


	14. Round And Round

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Guard Maze comes back to haunt Duke once again...

**_The Crocker Chronicles_ **  
**_Chapter 14_ **  
**_"Round and Round"_ **

 

**_ 06 April _ **

  
_So the Guard, or Spiral as they're known in this world, have turned up, only here in this world, they hide their tattoos, only visible with ultra violet light as opposed to my world, where they had no problems showing them off (especially to me). I just can't seem to get away from that mark, can I?_

  
_These guys are not like regular Guard people; they want to be Troubled-it gives them powers, they feel. Having been a first-hand witness to these so-called powers, I'd like to tell them they're wrong; but for now, my hands are tied. Literally. Howard and I could escape very easily, but then we'd blow our cover._

  
_Howard has asked Nate, Mil and Regina to not say anything about Vince and I being ‘different’ for the moment; or to disclose what we were talking about before they arrived, particularly the Genus Initiative. Vince took a powder, and I don’t blame him. I’m not sure we can trust these people, and I'm pretty sure Howard and Vince don't either. But any port in a storm, and right now, it's blowing up a hurricane._

* * *

 

Duke shifted around in his seat, trying to get comfortable. The Spiral members, Drake, Thomas and Shelby Cannon, all siblings, had told them they would take them to one of their safe houses; but that they would have to surrender all touchpads, weapons, and agree to have their hands tied.

  
“Now wait just a minute,” Winters protested. “You’re asking us to trust you on blind faith here. For all we know, you’re going to turn us in.”

  
“These are permanently etched on, not painted on,” Drake had snarled at him. “You want our help, these are the terms.”

  
“I don’t recall we asked you for help in the first place,” Duke remarked, gauging the pair.

  
“Trust us—you need our help,” the girl Shelby spoke. “We’ve been listening to the scanners. They’ve done some updating on the drones in this region since you were last out here. They know about your little Holo-family projection show you put on a while ago. I give you maybe another hour before the whole of Enforcement turns up.”

  
Winters and Howard glanced at one another.

  
“It seems as though we’re between a rock and a hard place,” Vince murmured.

  
“Haven’t heard that one before,” Thomas muttered, and then peered a little closer at Vince and Duke, his eyes widening. “You guys are different,” he said, puzzled, and then an idea occurred to him. “Are—are you Outworlders?” he goggled, looking them over.

  
“You mean are we part of the Talking Monkeys? Yes, we’re Outworlders,” Duke sniped, cutting his eyes over at Regina, who looked amused at Duke’s remark.

  
“Well, whoever you are or wherever you’re from, you guys are about to be set upon by Enforcement, big-time,” Shelby spoke. “At least with us you have half a chance to avoid capture.”

  
Winters weighed it over in his mind; and then nodded to Mil and they silently handed over their touchpads and side arms. Howard raised his arms, and Thomas patted him down.

  
“He’s clean,” he told Drake and Shelby.

  
“Now you,” Drake gestured at Duke.

  
“Sorry, I left my club at my cave back in Otherworld,” Duke said sweetly, and Shelby chuckled as Thomas searched him over, finding nothing.

  
“Kind of a wise-ass, aren’t you?” Drake muttered.

  
“Better than being a dumb one,” Duke shot back. He didn’t like these guys, but knew if they were going to have any chance of beating these Troubles, then they needed Dr. Mendelssohn’s help.

  
Winters and Mil were bound first, and a canvas bag placed over their heads once they were seated in the van, and then Howard, and lastly, Duke, who Drake conveniently bagged before he got in, causing Duke to bang his shins on the van’s step.

  
“Sorry about that,” Drake remarked.

  
“Yeah right,” Duke grumbled sarcastically. He felt Drake sit down beside him on the bench seat, and the van roared to life.

  
It felt as though they journeyed for hours. No one spoke much, and Duke felt sleepy. It was warm in the van, and he drifted in and out of consciousness, dreaming of being back sailing on _The Cape Rouge_ , when a sudden jolt woke him up, and Drake snatched the bag from Duke’s head, blinding him momentarily.

  
“Rise and shine, we’re here,” he said cheerfully.

  
Duke couldn’t help but feel a little overawed by the place. It appeared to be some sort of nondescript defunct factory, but Duke’s sharp eyes took in the sharpshooters on the catwalks, the unblinking gleam of electric eyes rigged everywhere.

  
_They’re protecting something here, that’s for sure_ , he thought, catching Regina’s eye, and she nodded imperceptibly.

  
_Careful on communicating this way,_ she told him. _Some of them may be able to do it also._

  
They were walked towards the entrance of what looked to be a tunnel that led underground, and they came to a freight elevator that was guarded by two beefy men with weapons.

  
“All aboard,” Shelby smiled, and they crowded inside, except for Thomas and Drake.

  
“We’re going to go talk with Gregory,” Drake gestured, and Shelby nodded as he slammed the gate shut and the elevator descended.

  
“What is this place?” Howard asked. “I’ve been—away, for a long time.”

  
“This is Bio-Mech Technologies,” Regina spoke. “Or it used to be until they were closed down.”

  
“What’s Bio-Mech? I presume it’s shorthand for some form of Biology and Mechanics,” Duke said, and Shelby nodded.

  
“Biologic software,” Regina told him. “Originally, it was designed as an aid for paraplegics—basically, in your terms, it was a program developed to override damaged neurological cells and nerves.”

  
“So if an accident had left someone paralyzed from the neck down, this—biological software—would let them walk again?” Duke asked. “What a great invention,” he marveled, and Shelby nodded again, her face sad.

  
“That was what it was _supposed_ to be used for,” she said softly.

  
“Let me guess—some bureaucrat or psycho somewhere said ‘you know, we could make this into a weapon,’ and that’s just what they did,” Duke answered, seeing he was right, if Regina’s expression was anything to go by.

  
“The main sequencing code that oversaw the programming was hacked—and introduced a virus that overrode the personas of the people who’d had the procedure done,” Shelby answered as the elevator came to a stop many floors below ground. “The hackers used them like sleepers-they turned them into assassins and criminals."

  
“The Council said that Spiral was responsible for the hack,” Regina said. “I guess they were right.”

  
Shelby shook her head.

  
“It _wasn’t_ us,” she said vehemently. “We don’t hurt people, if it’s at all possible!”

  
“I can remember that from when I was a kid,” Regina argued. “My uncle had been injured in a flight accident, and he had the Bio-Ware done. It was working like a charm until then.”

  
“He was affected by the hacking? Howard questioned.

  
“No,” Regina answered. “You know what Bio-Mech’s solution to fixing the hack was? They simply pulled the plug on the program, and shut down all the installed software,” she continued, blinking hard a couple of times. “The only problem with that brilliant solution was as the Bio-Mech software was hardwired directly into the brain, when it was shut down—“

  
“They all died,” Duke finished quietly.

  
“Or left in a vegetative state, which is what happened with Uncle Danny,” Regina spoke. “They arrested the CEO of Bio-Mech for numerous counts of homicide and negligence, as he was the one who gave the order to shut it down.”

  
Realization dawned on her. “His name was Alexander _Cannon_ ,” she remembered.

  
“He was our father,” Shelby answered briskly. “So as you can well imagine, Bio-Mech went under quickly after that,” Shelby spoke, leading them down a corridor into a large corridor with huge pipes running along the walls, the corridor spotless. “Daddy couldn’t deal with it, and committed suicide. So now this is our headquarters.”

  
“You started Spiral because of that?” Duke asked, and Shelby nodded.

  
“We discovered the symbol on some rocks when I was a kid on a trip to Otherworld,” Shelby explained. “Our guide there said it was a symbol for a secret society that operated outside of government influence—that they helped people in trouble. So we adopted it here as our symbol.”

  
“They’re called the Guard in my world,” Duke told her. “And they did try to help people in trouble," he finished, glancing at Howard.

  
“Did you ever meet any of them?”

  
“Quite a few, actually,” Duke replied. “Where are you taking us?”

  
“Here,” Shelby said, and opened the double doors to reveal what appeared to be a hidden city.

  
What struck Duke was how clean everything was, considering they were underground. There were whole families, children giggling and running, playing tag, and small storefronts that sold goods.

  
“Are they all in Spiral?” Winters got out.

  
“Not all,” Shelby replied. “Many of them came to us for help after the Aether bombing. The doctors up top seemed more interested in cataloging what their afflictions did rather than trying to cure them.”

  
“Sounds familiar,” Duke grumbled, thinking on Charlotte Cross’ Trouble Census.

  
“But—we’ve always been told that it was Spiral that wanted to be super-powered,” Mil said.

  
“That’s what the media and the Council says,” an older man spoke, walking towards them. “That’s so you don’t find out what their real game is.” He came to a stop in front of them, and smiled at Howard.

  
“Hello, Byron,” he said warmly, shaking hands with him. “It’s been a long time.”

  
“Dr. Mendelssohn,” Howard answered. “It has been a very long time indeed.”

  
Duke wandered away a bit. Off to the right, he noticed a boy waiting to jump out and scare a younger girl, probably his sister, and he smiled.

  
“Hey, Tracy, come on!” he called, and the little girl smiled, and approached the alley way.

  
“Boo!” the boy yelled, jumping out and scaring her.

  
The little girl screamed, and then began to convulse, a thick, brackish viscous substance coming from her mouth.

  
“Tracy, what’s the matter?” the boy cried.

  
_No!_ Duke realized in horror. _He’s triggered the Fear Trouble in her!_

  
He remembered his father telling him the story of Jenny Mears back in Haven. He recalled how he’d stood in that field with his ghostly father, Simon telling him of how when Jenny had been so frightened by Mrs. Holloway’s campfire story, that she’d unleashed that Trouble, killing 12 kids and two chaperones, and almost without thinking, Duke crossed over to her, and put his hand on her forehead.

  
“What are you doing? Take your hands off my—“he heard a man cry out, but Duke wouldn’t stop—he couldn’t stop.

  
_Duke, stop!_ Duke heard Mil’s mental cry.

  
_If I don’t stop this, she’ll kill dozens of people with this Trouble!_  he thought to Winters and Mil as he summoned the aether to him, pulling it out of the girl as he was vaguely aware of things slowing down around them as Mil protected him from being tackled.

  
He retrieved the last of the aether, and released the little girl, feeling time start again. He sagged to the ground, and the girl’s father snatched her away from his grasp as others made to grab hold of Duke.

  
“Don’t touch him—leave him alone!” Mendelssohn shouted out, he and Howard rushing over to Duke, the others backing away quickly.

  
Duke couldn’t stop shaking. He almost felt as though he were about to have a seizure, the foreign aether roiling through him like a black oily monster, and he realized that it was trying to overtake him. He fought back, and was rewarded with a fresh round of agony for his trouble.

  
“Duke,” Howard called in a low voice, and Duke turned black eyes on him, hearing Mendelssohn gasp. “Calm down.”

  
“T-Trying,” Duke choked. “I-I can’t—“

  
“You can,” Howard assured, his tone gentle, his hand on the back of Duke’s neck, soothingly cool. “Just focus on the aether. Imagine it as a sphere, just like you’ve done before.”

  
“Use your intent,” he heard Mendelssohn softly add in. “Just focus.”

  
Duke focused with all he had, and formed the aether sphere in his hand, feeling Howard retrieve it from him.

  
“Good job, Duke,” he heard, and then oblivion closed in.

  
Mendelssohn stared down at the unconscious form before him.

  
“You did it, Byron,” he breathed. “You really made one. How did you do it?”

  
“We can discuss the situation later,” Howard said. “Right now, let’s get him away from here.”

  
“My lab and living quarters are through here,” Mendelssohn gestured. “We can take him there.”

  
Duke roused again and the two men helped him to his feet, draping his arms around their shoulders.

  
“Sorry,” he managed to say. “Couldn’t let her Trouble—go active.”

  
“You did the right thing,” Howard assured him.

  
“Kind of blew our cover though.”

  
“That you did,” Howard smiled slightly. “But it’ll be okay.”

 

_I’m glad he thinks so._


	15. Street Fighting Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke begins to have his doubts about Spiral--and Dr. Mendelsohn...

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 15** _   
_**"Street Fighting Man"** _

 

__

**_ 07 April _ **

 

  
_Well, we wanted to find Dr. Mendelssohn, and we found him. Not quite the way we thought we would find him, but whatever works, right?_

  
_Somehow, I'm not terribly surprised by Spiral’s revelation that the Council is not comprised entirely of Boy Scouts. Good to know that avarice and greed isn't just a by-product of my world, I suppose. But if I'm to believe what I've been told, things may actually be much worse than we thought._

* * *

 

 

Duke walked slowly around the lab setup. He could see small vials of aether stored here and there, all inert.

  
"Someone's been out in the Void collecting," he remarked, gesturing toward them to Howard.

  
Dr. Mendelssohn observed Duke closely.

  
"He's so--human-like," he said. "I have seen aether constructs before, but they weren't like him."

  
“Because Duke was human to begin with,” Howard said.

  
Dr. Mendelssohn went up to Duke and touched his shoulder, smiling.

  
"I had all but given up hope that a being like you would ever exist," he said. "Byron has told me some of how you came about, but what of you?"

  
"What about me?" Duke asked.

  
"What was your participation in the project?"

  
"Um…dying?” Duke said helpfully.

  
“Duke’s family had been Troubled, almost from the time Douglas crossed over into their world,” Howard explained. “Duke was the culmination of his line’s aether gathering.”

  
“I thought for a while there I was rid of it,” Duke mumbled.

  
“Yes,” Howard answered. “But Mara reactivated it.”

  
“ _Audrey_ reactivated my Trouble,” Duke pointed out. 

  
“But she remembered who she really was underneath, didn’t she?” Howard asked, and Duke nodded his head. “And then Mara—adjusted your Troubles.”

  
“How do you know that?” Duke demanded.

  
“When we brought you into the Armory, we collected your memories—all of them. I explained that to you-we did that so we could make you as much like yourself as you ever were,” Howard continued, and looked Duke over. “But what concerns me most is the reaction you had to the aether. That isn’t supposed to be happening.”

  
Duke didn’t answer. The aether from the little girl had felt like hooks digging into him trying to get it out, and he feared that if the next few Troubles were going to be like that—he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to overcome it.

  
“It seems as though it is a concern for him as well,” Dr. Mendelssohn noted. “Have a seat, please,” he gestured to an examination table.

  
Duke glanced at Howard, who nodded, and Duke sank down onto the table as Dr. Mendelssohn poked and prodded, shining a light in his eyes, testing his reflexes, listening to his chest.

  
“A _marvelous_ job of reconstruction,” he commented. “If you had not told me he was a construct, I wouldn’t know it.”

  
“You mean he’s an android also?” Regina asked.

  
“I am _not_ a robot,” Duke snapped.

  
“Nothing to be ashamed of if you are,” Regina replied. “Edward is an android,” she motioned toward the pale blonde man.

  
“He’s a Companion Droid,” Dr. Mendelssohn said. “And a very high end one at that.”

  
“You mean he’s—not a real person?” Duke asked. “He’s a robot?”

  
“No, he is an _android_ , not a robot, there is a difference in classifications,” she reproved.

  
“Does he talk? Does he sound like he’s been Auto-Tuned when he speaks? I’m just curious, because he hasn’t said a word since you two showed up,” Duke said.

  
“No, he doesn’t speak. He’s non-verbal,” Regina replied. “I hear so many people all day long in my head, and during performances, he’s rather soothing to come home to,” she finished, and Edward gave her a small smile.

  
“Like Ezra and his communicating with fish,” Duke remembered.

  
“I have fish also,” Regina stated. “I understand why your friend would prefer their company—they’re very quiet.”

  
“He wasn’t exactly a friend,” Howard stated, glancing at Duke, who was observing Dr. Mendelssohn pick up a hypodermic syringe and advance on him. Duke pulled his arm back.

  
“Hold up,” he said. “Before you get any big ideas, we did not come here so I could be your lab rat. Whatever your big project is you feel like you had to hide away from your government to work on, that’s your business. We’re here to find the people who set off the Aether bomb, that’s William Durst and Meredith McKay.”

  
“Meredith?” Dr. Mendelssohn gasped. “Not that sweet child!”

  
“I’m afraid so,” Howard answered. “It would seem William swayed her over to his side, and has infused enough aether into her so that she can use an assortment of Troubles.”

  
“She released those Troubles?” Regina asked.

  
“No, they used a man from my world, Mark Mathis,” Duke said, glancing at the small group.

  
Dr. Mendelssohn laid the syringe down and walked over to a large refrigerated drawer unit, and opened one, sliding the tray out to reveal the body of Mark Mathis.

  
“I see by your expressions, this is your Mr. Mathis,” Dr. Mendelssohn remarked, and Howard and Duke nodded agreement. “Enforcement recovered him from the reservoir, and ordered the body destroyed. We intercepted it on the way to the crematorium," he continued.   “He was already dead by the time he went into the water, however."

  
“He probably died when he expulsed the aether,” Howard answered, examining the body.

  
Duke looked down at Mark’s grayish form. His eyes were coal black, and Duke felt a shiver run down his back, realizing that it could have very easily been him in the morgue when he’d erupted.

But on a closer look, he also saw that Mark had black veins—the same as Evi and the others in the police station had when they’d all been locked down with Nikki Coleman’s Trouble running rampant. But Evi hadn’t died from the Trouble; she’d died from a bullet, he remembered.

  
_They killed him with that Toxic Fear Trouble,_ he thought. _But then again, the Troubles they stuffed him with are far worse than the ones I had bottled up_ , he reflected, and saw Mil studying him, her face concerned, and he felt her put her hand in his. He gave it a gentle squeeze, and turned back to Dr. Mendelssohn.

  
“I have some questions for you and Howard,” he said.

  
“And I have many more for you,” Mendelssohn replied. “So I shall strike a deal with you, Duke—you answer some of mine, and I will do my utmost to answer yours.”

  
“No half-truths or sugar coating it either,” Duke said severely. “I ask, you answer, and vice versa.”

  
“Agreed,” Mendelssohn stated, holding his hand out, and Duke shook it. “First question: how did your—Trouble—as Byron has termed it—work?”

  
“In my world, we’ve always called them Troubles. Mine however, was more of a curse,” Duke answered truthfully, and told Mendelssohn how the Crocker curse had worked, and he nodded.

  
“A rather primitive but effective method of gathering charged aether,” he replied, tucking the sheet back around Mathis, and sliding the tray back into the drawer and closing it. “That explains the condition of this poor soul.”

  
“Why are his Troubles worse than the ones I had?” Duke asked. “And why did he die? I didn’t when I expulsed mine.”

  
“I believe the journey through the Void had a detrimental effect on his health. People of your world cannot stay long in there; we’re not really sure why, but it affects you negatively. Even we can suffer from aether sickness, with long-term exposure.”

  
“Like Croatoan,” Duke muttered. “It made him crazy. It didn’t do much for my mental state either.”

  
“Who?”

  
“Douglas Cross,” Howard explained.

  
“Speaking of the Crosses, I haven’t seen Charlotte for some time now,” Mendelssohn said. “Last I knew, she was headed for Otherworld, to search for Mara.”

  
“She’s dead,” Duke informed him, and looked up at Mil. “Now another question: we found out about your little project where you and Howard and the Crosses were doping Halfling kids with aether,” he said meaningfully. “I’m sure Nathan, Mil and Regina would like some answers.”

  
“What do you mean, Halflings?” Regina blurted, startled at this revelation. “Do you mean to say that I—“

  
“I’m afraid so,” Duke sighed, and gave her a small smirk. “It turns out that you’re half-Monkey.”

  
“It was a shock for us as well,” Winters spoke, a hand on her shoulder. “The thing is though; none of us can remember these experiments.”

  
“And why the sudden change of heart? Did the Council put the kibosh on you continuing the experiments on half-Otherworld people because it was causing adverse effects—or did you make the decision to stop?” Duke demanded.

  
“After Douglas was caught and sentenced to the Void, I abandoned the project, saying that the aether enhancement project would not work on people from our world, and they believed me,” Mendelssohn sighed. “I destroyed all our research, blocked the children’s memories—“

  
“And then made it look like you’d been kidnapped,” Duke finished.

  
“I needed to disappear,” Mendelssohn said. “There were those on the Council that said I needed to be in the Void along with Douglas.”

  
“I’m not so sure they were wrong about that,” Regina huffed, stalking off down the corridor, Edward padding along silently behind her.

  
“We’ll need to keep an eye on Ms. Meadows,” Howard remarked. “Her father is on the Council of Regents. They govern the scientific body of this world,” he told Duke.

  
“No wonder she was so well-informed,” Winters commented.

  
“She’s not going anywhere,” Mendelssohn answered. “We are far too underground for her to be able to communicate telepathically, and the children—that is, Shelby and her brothers—are more than capable of making sure anyone they want to stay here, stays here.” He shook his head. “I still cannot believe that about Meredith,” he murmured. “She was such a sweet, talented child.”

  
“Believe it. I’ve dealt with a few of her issued Troubles, and seen her in action,” Duke told him. “Your good little girl has gone very bad.”

  
“You said she’s with William Durst?”

  
Duke nodded.

  
“William has proven himself to be quite a thorn in our sides for some time,” Howard said dryly. “First he took up with Mara, and now with Meredith.”

  
“He told me he wants to see my world destroyed,” Duke said. “I’m willing to wager that he’s probably got the same thing in mind here too, or at the very least, a change in management.”

  
“You may be right about that,” Mendelssohn said somberly. “But for now, I am certain that you and the others are tired. Rest, eat, and I will explain everything to you all a little later on. Right now, I would like to speak with Byron alone.”

  
“We want answers, Dr. Mendelssohn,” Winters told him.

  
“And you will get them, Nathaniel, I swear it,” Mendelssohn promised solemnly. “It will take a little time to set up; but this evening, you will have the answers.”

  
Winters gave a grudging nod.

  
“I look forward to it,” he said.

  
“If you’ll follow along down this corridor, there will be the kitchens, so you can get something to eat,” Dr. Mendelssohn told them, waving them vaguely away, and Winters, Mil and Duke set off down the corridor in the direction that Regina had gone, to find her brooding at a corner table, Edward sitting next to her, looking at her sympathetically.

  
Winters noted her saddened expression.

  
“Seems as though she’s on the Halflings-Are-Less-Than-Human side of the equation here,” Duke commented.

  
“It’s a shock, I’m sure,” Winters replied. “Look, I know it must be hard for you to comprehend, but Halflings are viewed as being weak, because your bodies are much frailer than ours; and not nearly as long-lived as we.”

  
“The next person in this world to suggest I lack the mental intellect to—never mind. You’re _so_ superior here, I get it. Fine then, Mr. Superior-solve your own damn Troubles then,” Duke snapped, and walked off.

  
“Why do you insist on insulting him?” Mil rounded on her partner. “He’s done nothing to us. And you know as well as I do he didn’t release those Troubles!”

  
“I wasn’t trying to insult him! You know what they’re like on Otherworld,” Winters assuaged her. “They’re little more than—educated savages.”

  
“From what I’m seeing here, you’re no better. Educated people don’t look down their noses at others,” Mil replied, narrowing her eyes, and walked off to join Duke at a table, leaving Winters staring after her open-mouthed.

  
Out of the corner of his eye, Duke saw Mil approach.

  
“Do you feel like some company?” she asked.

  
Duke shrugged a response. She could see he was angry, his stormy expression as he gazed at the wall-sized viewing screen that was currently displaying an island setting, and he wondered what Shelley, Susie and Jake were up to back in Isla de Jean Batiste.

  
“We don’t all have that mindset,” she told him, and put her hand on his. “We really don’t.”

  
Duke’s expression softened.

  
“I know _you_ don’t,” he replied. “Nate and Regina though, I’m not so sure about,” he sighed, and shook his head.

  
“Personally, I think your world sounds really nice,” Mil smiled. “I’ve never gotten to go over there.”

  
“It has its moments,” Duke smiled slightly. He turned his gaze to her. She truly did remind him of Jennifer, and he felt that ache once more in his chest. Maybe he needed to get Vince and Howard to tune him up a bit and tone down some of his memories; but only them. Something about Mendelssohn set his teeth on edge; he didn’t know why, but he was rather wary of Dr. Christophe Mendelssohn and his Spiral groupies of being any actual help in their search.

  
“What do you think they’re talking about—Howard and Dr. Mendelssohn?” Mil questioned him. “And why didn’t they want you to stay?”

  
“I’m just the cleaner grunt,” Duke muttered. “And there’s something about this place, Mil,” he went on, glancing around them. “I don’t know why; but I don’t trust these people.”

  
“What do you mean?” she asked.

  
Duke frowned. “This whole setup,” he said at length. “Spiral’s an aether extremist group, right? Or at least, that’s what we’ve been told.”

  
“Yeah—they’re on the Most Wanted list,” Mil replied. “I’m not following you, Duke.”

  
“Howard said Meredith was part of an aether extremist group, Spiral. Yet Mendelssohn acted like he was shocked to discover that she wasn’t with them anymore,” Duke pointed out. “It doesn’t make sense.”

  
“This is a fairly large facility, Duke,” Mil told him. “He may not have known she’d been turned.”

  
“And that’s another thing—in my world, extremists don’t have spotless state-of-the-art facilities they operate out of,” Duke answered quietly. “They couldn’t have begun to handle a large influx of people, like Shelby claims they had here; not without tipping their hand to the authorities. It’s—too clean here, it’s too well-organized. Your people might be superior, but you saw the footage on TV of what Newhaven looked like after the Aether bombing,” he continued. “It didn’t look quite so neat and clean, did it?”

  
“No, it didn’t,” Mil murmured. “I think we’re going to have some rather pointed questions for Dr. Mendelssohn a little later on.”

  
He gazed at her a few more moments, just cradling her hand in his.

  
“Do I really look so much like your friend?” she asked, and Duke nodded.

  
“Very much so,” he replied.

  
“We may be twinners,” she smiled.

  
“What’s a twinner? I know what twins are, of course, but I’m not familiar with the term twinner.”

  
“A twinner is someone who bears a resemblance to another person in another reality. Not necessarily related, but—similar,” Mil said. “Perhaps I’m your Jennifer’s twinner.”

  
“So that means that somewhere in this world, there’s another version of me walking around?” Duke questioned. “Comforting thought. In my world, there’s an old saying—everyone’s got a double. I never thought it could really be possible, though.” He smiled. “This is kind of a unique face,” he grinned, gesturing at his own, and she returned his grin.

  
“You have a great smile,” she said. “It’s nice to see it.”

  
“Yours isn’t so bad either,” he answered. “And if you ever want to see my neck of the woods, I’ll be glad to show you around.”

  
“Sounds great,” she answered, and the two of them just sat in silence watching as the viewing screen changed to an underwater shot, the ocean teeming with wildlife, some of which Duke had never seen.

* * *

  
Over at another table, Winters was conversing with Regina.

  
“They seem to be getting rather cozy, don’t they?” she remarked, watching Duke and Mil talking.

  
“Yes, they do,” Winters muttered. “I don’t know if she should be so friendly with him.”

  
“He’s a construct,” she said dismissively. “He’s a very well-built one, but a construct nonetheless.”

  
“No—he’s not like any construct I’ve ever seen before,” Winters told her. “He—he feels emotion, Ms. Meadows.”

  
“Call me Regina,” she told him.

  
“Regina,” he amended. “Those aren’t programmed reactions he shows; it’s real, genuine emotion.”

  
“That’s impossible,” Regina answered, but gave Duke another look. “Unless—unless he’s the result of a successful Genus experiment. If he is—we need him.”

  
“What do you mean?” Winters asked.

“I mean if we can get out of here, Daddy’s company will pay _anything_ to have access to him,” Regina said in a low voice. “But you saw the way Mendelssohn was looking at him.”

  
“Like a kid with a new toy,” Winters muttered. “Like a kid with a new and exceedingly dangerous toy. Something about this whole setup here bothers me.”

  
“I’m glad I’m not the only one who noticed that,” Regina muttered, surprising him. “And I can tell you this much—our aether friend Duke is feeling much the same way. So why don’t you get your new buddy there to break us out of here? And I promise you, he will net us both more money than you could possibly spend in _three_ lifetimes.”

  
Winters didn’t answer; but Regina smiled, and sipped at her coffee, knowing that Enforcement Officer Nathaniel Winters was giving her suggestion some serious thought.


	16. Into The Great Wide Open

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke and Mil discover distressing news about Mendelsohn..and Regina

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 16** _   
_**"Into The Great Wide Open"** _

 

**_ 09 April _ **

 

_So far, I have to say that I am thoroughly underwhelmed by this so-called 'more advanced' society. They seem to enjoy lording their superiority over Halflings, and that kind of behavior has never set well with me. No wonder Croatoan and Mara wanted to take them down a peg or four. But Troubling them wasn’t the answer. They honestly seem to have no concept of how to deal with being Troubled. Mil has begun to understand how hers works; and so far, we’re still waiting for the other shoe to drop, the ‘catch’ with her Trouble, because there’s always a catch to having a Trouble._

  
_Alt-Nathan has yet to trigger, but I’ve also noticed he and Miss Mesmerism have certainly gotten chummy in the last few days. More than once I’ve walked into the room and their conversation stops. I may not be from here, but I don’t have to be able to read minds to know who or what they’re talking about: me._

  
_There was another mass outbreak of Troubles in Newhaven according to the news, so things are heating up. Whatever Mendelssohn and Howard are working on in the lab, they haven’t said; nor have they asked Vince or me to be a part of it, and that worries me._

  
_The other thing that worries me is I have seen neither hide nor hair of the Cannon siblings since we came down here. If this is their family's company and Mendelssohn's so important to their cause, where are they?_

 

Duke paced, restless and agitated. They’d been underground for nearly three days now; and out of contact with Vince in the Armory.

  
Mendelssohn's 'big reveal' in the laboratory yesterday hadn't been much more than they'd known before going in; that Nate, Mil and Regina had been a part of a group of children that had been used in an aether experimentation. Meredith had been the most 'gifted' of the group, with her telekinetic abilities, but Regina had excelled at telepathy, Nate and Mil also proving adept at it as well, but Regina was unparalleled, as Mendelssohn had told them.

  
Duke wondered if the Troubles that had struck Nate and Mil had been drawn to them--purposely.

  
_Is it possible to purposely direct a Trouble to someone?_ he wondered. When he'd released all those Troubles back in Haven, they'd gone to people with no seeming pattern, just intent on finding someone who was not Troubled already.

  
As much as he hated to admit it, Duke really needed to talk with Croatoan, to find out how things worked in this world.

  
However, in order to do that, he had to get out of here. But everywhere he looked, there were cameras-save for one area--the women's dormitories. The men's dorms did not have cameras as well, but there was always someone in there, it seemed. Plus, the women's had a sort of ventilation shaft, and as far as Duke had been able to tell from the few moments he'd seen inside, it did not have a micro-screen on it, whereas the vent in the men's dorms did.

  
_Bet I can guess why they installed that,_ Duke thought glumly, watching Howard and Mendelssohn talking with one another at the table. _Enough is enough_ , he reflected. _Either they tell me what they're up to, or I'm out of here, today._

  
Mil came into view, and Duke walked up to her.

  
"Good morning," he smiled, and she returned it.

  
"You seem in better spirits this morning," she noted.

  
"A little better," he answered. "Hey--are you going to be around today?" Duke asked.

  
"Um, I guess so," she replied, puzzled. "It's not like we're getting out of here any time soon, it seems."

  
"Yeah, I've noticed that too," Duke mumbled. "But I might be able to do something about that, if you're willing to help me."

  
"What can I do?" Mil asked.

  
"I'll tell you later," Duke said, seeing Winters and Regina coming into view. "I don't want the Dynamic Duo there reading your mind and finding out what I'm up to. I know he's your partner, Mil, but since he's been hanging around with Regina--I don't know."

  
"I've noticed that too," Mil murmured. "He--he's shut me out; he won't talk to me anymore. I thought at first he was angry with me because I got onto him about--" she broke off. "Maybe it wasn't about that; maybe it's because of her influence."

  
"I'm willing to bet it's the latter," Duke told her. "There's something about her I just don't trust, Mil."

  
A thought occurred to Mil. "Could you--could you cure her? If you take her Trouble--"

  
"That same thought also crossed my mind," Duke half-smiled. "But I think it would cause us more headaches than it would solve. I think we should leave her Trouble active for now."

  
"I caught a little of what Nathan was thinking about the other day," Mil whispered. "It's something about you. Has Dr. Mendelssohn or Howard mentioned anything about WeirCorp?"

  
"No--what's WeirCorp?"

  
"WeirCorp is Regina's father's company. It's a multi-conglomerate--manufacture, weaponry--space exploration. Also said to be behind the Genus Project," she whispered.

  
"I figured as much," Duke answered back without moving his lips. "So that's why it's imperative that I get out of here and get back to Vince. I think Mendelssohn may have compromised Howard, and if I keep staying here, I'm going to be his or somebody's pet project. I'd corner Regina and force her to tell me what's going on, but it's not that easy."

  
"No, and you shouldn't try it either," Mil said. "Edward is _always_ around her. He's a KT-40, which means he's been programmed to be a skilled fighter in multiple forms of self-defense," she continued. "And he's also equipped with a sonic alarm so if anybody tries to kidnap or hurt Regina, he goes off."

  
"Her own personal T-1000," Duke muttered.

  
"Why would she have one of those for protection? That's just a dishwasher droid for restaurants," Mil puzzled, and Duke laughed.

  
"In my world, a T-1000 is _not_ a dishwasher droid," he chuckled. "Just--stay close today, okay?"

  
"All right, Duke," Mil answered, and Duke ambled off down the hallway, passing Winters and Regina with a nod as he went over to Howard and Dr. Mendelssohn.

 

"Good morning, Duke," Howard greeted. "What's on your mind?"

  
"I should be close enough for you to be able to determine that," Duke said coolly.

  
"I realize that we've been keeping you out of the labs, and I apologize for that," Mendelssohn answered sincerely. "But actually, we would like for you to join us in there later this morning. We think we may have the solution to your problems with aether removal."

  
"Will Vince be joining us?" Duke questioned, and Howard looked alarmed for a moment, and Mendelssohn looked confused.

  
"Who?" he asked.

  
_Keep silent--say nothing_ , Duke heard Howard in his head. _Go to the mine below here. It's a chrossometer mine. We have to get word to Vincent. We are trapped here_.

  
"Did I say Vince? I meant Nathan," Duke shrugged. "He reminds me very much of someone I knew in my human life named Vince. He was his twinner, as you say here," Duke lied smoothly, seeing understanding in Mendelssohn's face.

  
"I see you're starting to pick up the terminology of this world," Mendelssohn beamed. "Yes, actually, Nathaniel, Regina and Millicent will all be joining us today in the lab."

  
"Great," Duke enthused, but his suspicions were on high alert. "I look forward to it."

  
He cast a parting glance at Howard to see if he could pick up anything else; but Howard was mum.

  
Duke collected Mil at the end of the corridor, and the two of them set off for the elevators that led further underground.

  
"Where are we going?" she asked. "This isn't the way to the dorm."

  
Duke turned his gaze on her.

  
_What is a chrossometer stone?_ he asked mentally. _Only communicate with me this way_ , he nodded at the camera in the elevator.

  
_The chrossometer stone can open a doorway into different realities_ , Mil answered, and gasped. _They have a mine here?_

  
 _Howard says we're trapped here. Maybe one of these stones can get us out of here,_ Duke thought to her, and the doors to the elevator opened, revealing what looked like the entrance to a mine shaft.

  
 _S_ eeing there were no cameras down here, Duke and Mil stepped out of the elevator, cautiously creeping forward into the tunnel, where they could hear voices up ahead--one of which sounded like Regina's.

  
Curious, they crept closer, hiding themselves behind crates and peered out at the little gathering.

  
Before them they found Regina, Drake, Thomas, and Shelby Cannon, along with Meredith McKay, all involved in conversation.

  
"What about those two cops?" Meredith was asking.

  
"They'll be no problem, or at least, _he_ won't be a problem," Regina said. "Officer Winters has been coming along under my influence nicely. He should be of no real concern. Chambers though, has been getting rather close to Duke."

  
Duke felt Mil bristle beside him, and he motioned her to keep quiet, but she crinkled her forehead at him. She tapped her forehead, and Duke shook his, unable to read her thoughts.

  
_I can't read her mind in here,_ he thought, glancing around at the sparkling crystalline walls. _That means Regina can't read ours either!_

  
"Well, when do we get our hands on him, William wants to know," Meredith remarked. "It seems as though he's really got an axe to grind with Duke."

  
"I understand there was a great deal of conflict in Duke's old world, from before he became a construct," Regina sighed. "But we are all to meet in the lab in two hours, supposedly to fix the bad reactions he's been having in curing Troubles," she went on. “That was tricky, setting off just the right ones that could affect him that way. But William’s very clever that way,” she smiled.

  
"And you're sure that you can bring him under control?"

  
"Dr. Mendelssohn is certain of it. Once Duke is confined to the machine, we’ll be able to open any doorway," Regina assured her. She glanced around. "We need to part ways here," she told them. "You know it’s odd; but it feels like somebody's listening in on us."

  
"No one can read your mind down here, that's why we chose this old chrossometer mine as our meeting area," Drake said. "But I guess you had better get back up top before they miss you."

  
Regina nodded agreement, and the little group dispersed.

  
Duke and Mil crept silently around the outside of the crates as they headed for the elevators.

  
When the doors had closed and the car had begun its ascent, they straightened up from their hiding place, and Mil looked at Duke.

  
"Now we know what their end game is," Duke said flatly. "They're planning on using me to open some doorway. It looks like Spiral believes in Aetherworld too."

  
Before Mil could answer, there was a groaning sound of metal emanating from the elevator shaft, indicating a car was coming down.

  
They quickly squirreled themselves back behind the crate as the doors opened, and Howard emerged.

  
Duke straightened up, and Howard looked relieved.

  
"I didn't find out about this place until yesterday," he told them. "We're safe here for the moment."

  
"Yeah, they can't read our minds down here, we know," Duke said. "You just missed Regina and the siblings Cannon having a most interesting meeting with Meredith McKay."

  
"Yes--it's Regina that's controlling everything," Howard answered gravely. "That's her _real_ Trouble."

  
"Like Ginger Danvers," Duke remembered, thinking on the little girl he’d encountered back in Haven who could make anyone do anything she told them to do.

  
"She can't control you, can she?" Duke asked, and Howard shook his head.

  
"No, but I've had to pretend to be," he replied. "I know you've been frustrated by us not allowing you into the lab, but now you know why."

  
"Regina's really the brains behind Spiral, isn't she?" Mil asked, and Howard nodded.

  
"She is; or rather, Carter Durst is."

  
"And he's--" Duke prodded.

  
"Her father," Howard replied. "He’s also William's."

  
"And I thought Mara and Croatoan were bad enough," Duke remarked. "Let me guess--they unleash all these Troubles on this place. Then Carter Durst steps up and says, 'I have the solution to save us all, but that means that the kiddies and I have to be in charge of it, because only we can control it.' That sound about right?"

  
Howard nodded.

  
"These guys make the Borgias look like the Cleavers," Duke exhaled. "All right then—how do we get the heck out of Dodge, Secret Agent Man?" he questioned Howard. "I was planning on making a break through the ladies' dorm using the vent shaft--"

  
"Don't," Howard urged. "Everywhere down here has been rigged with micro-screens; there isn't a tunnel that doesn't have at least one of more in them. Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't tried to make a break for it before now."

  
"Believe it or not, I do--did--have some patience when I was a person," Duke chided. "If we're trapped, then how do we get out of this? Why do they want me so bad?"

  
"Because," Howard said. "It turns out that Aetherworld is indeed very real--and you are the only one who can access it."

  
"Are you saying you _want_ me to go into that thing they have rigged up?" Duke goggled.

  
"I want you to buy us some time,” Howard told him, running his hand along the wall until he found a fragment of stone sticking out, and broke it loose. “Chrossometer can open doorways,” he continued.

  
“Mil told me,” Duke said. “Are you going to conjure a door and get us out of here?”

  
“No,” Howard replied. “ _You_ are going to conjure a door and put me back in the Armory with Vincent.”

  
“And just leave us here to deal with a potential political coup all by ourselves,” Duke stated.

  
“To go for help,” Howard said firmly. “Please, Duke—time is of the essence here. I’m sure they must be starting to look for you and Millicent. We don’t have much time.”

  
“Do it, Duke,” Mil urged. “We can’t let them get away with this.”

  
Duke put a hand on top of hers, and held it a moment.

  
“What do I have to do to open this door?” he finally asked.

  
“Take this stone,” Howard told him, pressing the fragment into Duke’s hand. “And envision the Armory. The doorway should appear briefly.”

  
Duke closed his fist around the stone.

  
“Focus and intent,” he muttered.

  
“Precisely,” he heard Howard say.

  
Duke pictured the spotless white interior, the corridors stretching on seemingly into infinity, and he saw the greenish glow appear before him, the peculiar rushing sound of the Void, and could see the interior of the Armory; and an anxious Vince.

  
“I will be back as soon as I can,” Howard said over the din. “Get back upstairs before they come looking for you.”

  
“What do I do if you don’t get back before they stick me in there?” Duke asked, and Howard looked steadily back at him.

  
“You go on into Aetherworld; and you don’t come back,” he said. “Once you enter there, the doorway will close behind you, and they won’t be able to reach you anymore. You’ll be safe—forever. Now go,” he finished, and stepped through the fissure, disappearing instantly.

  
Duke dropped his hand, and the thinny disappeared.

  
For a moment, neither he nor Mil spoke.

  
“Well, I guess we should get up top,” Duke told her.

  
“Duke,” Mil said softly.

  
“Yeah, Mil?” he asked.

  
“If—if you have to go into Aetherworld—and we don’t get to say—goodbye,” she went on, but Duke silenced her with a kiss.

  
Mil put her arms around him, and they kissed for a long moment before Duke pulled away, nuzzling her face. He had to figure out some way to fix all this. Not so much Newhaven’s sake, but for Mil’s and Winters; and for everyone back in his own realm.

  
_Time to put a stop to the Troubles once and for all_ , he thought.

  
“Come on,” he told her, taking her hand and pressing the button to summon the elevator. “Let’s go save the world.”


	17. King of Pain

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 17** _   
_**"King of Pain"** _

_**10 April** _

  
_After I got Howie shunted back to the Barn-Armory, Mil and I went back upstairs. Mil tells me that the rings that Croatoan, Mara and Charlotte used were set with chrossometer stones, in order to enter the Void and open thinnies. But chrossometer rings were deemed too dangerous as a means of transport, so they were basically outlawed by the Council of Regents._

  
_I would have preferred to leave with Howard and we just skip town so to speak, but I can’t leave Nate and Mil to the machinations of Regina and her Spiral buddies. It seems I do have something of a conscience after all. Sometimes, I think my caring will be my undoing one of these days. You’d think dying would have cured me of that._

* * *

 

Duke and Mil emerged from the elevator, and checked around carefully, and saw they weren’t being observed.

  
“Duke, what do we do now?” Mil asked.

  
“I wish I knew how things worked in your world a little better,” Duke grumbled, feeling out-of-sorts. “Maybe we’d know which way to turn then.”

  
“We could—“Mil began, and then stopped.

  
“We could what, Mil?”

  
“You could try going into a learning tube,” she told him.

  
“What’s a learning tube?”

  
“They’re teaching devices,” she replied. “And I happen to know where some are. Come on, I’ll show you.”

  
Duke nodded agreement, and they made their way to a building that was labeled as a learning library, and slipped inside, heading back to a series of large glassed-in enclosures.

  
“So how does one of these work again?” Duke asked, suspiciously eyeing the large glassed tube-like structure in front of him.

  
“It’s very simple—you go in, sit down, and you’ll be instructed in what to do. You just place those sensors on your temples, and the machine will do the rest,” Mil assured him. “What do you want to know?” she asked, pulling up the educational programs on the touchpad outside the tube.

  
“Everything I can get squeezed in,” Duke said. “I need to know how your world operates; how your governmental bodies operate. I can’t do anything flying blind here, and I don’t trust anyone around here enough to ask and be sure I’m getting a straight answer—present company excepted,” he finished kindly, getting a smile from Mil.

  
“How do you know I’m trustworthy?” she said.

  
“I just know,” Duke replied, smiling. “You know what to do, right?”

  
She nodded. “I buy us some time,” she told him. “I don’t know how long I can slow things down though, Duke.”

  
“Well, how long does one of these full-immersion programs run?”

  
“Since you’re pretty much starting from Kindergarten on through College, it could take hours,” she said. “But you’re not a human, you’re aether—it’ll be faster for you.” She bit her lip. “It’ll still take some time though.”

  
“Just do the best you can,” Duke replied. “That’s all I’m trying to do here—my best.”

  
“But hurry, okay?” Mil asked, glancing around, relieved to see they were still alone. “We have to be at the lab in an hour.”

  
“I will,” Duke promised solemnly, and gave her a small kiss before he stepped into the tube, the door hissing closed behind him.

  
He sat down, looking out at Mil, who was watching him anxiously, and he picked up the sensor pads, placing one each on his temples.

  
“ _Greetings, Student_ ,” the feminine electronic voice said. “ _Select level of learning now_.”

  
“It says select learning level,” Duke told her through the intercom.

  
“Select Zero through Sixteen,” Mil said into the speaker. “That’s about what would be a Bachelor’s Degree in your realm. Sixteen and up is Profession Learning, and we definitely don’t have time for that.”

  
Duke pressed the 0-16 square indicated on the screen, and a check mark appeared next to it.

  
“ _Initiating Learning Sequence_ ,” the voice said, and suddenly Duke felt as though he were on an acid trip, images, voices, sensations and colors swirling through his mind as the learning system fed him sixteen years’ worth of knowledge as Mil turned around and activated her Trouble, slowing down time within a hundred yards of the library while the machine did its work.

  
_C’mon, faster, faster, I can take it,_ Duke thought and the machine seemed to comply, the images going faster. Duke closed his eyes, absorbing the information he needed. _Hang in there, Mil, I’m almost done_ , he directed to her, and then suddenly, she slammed back against the door, and Duke saw the red smear of blood on the glass just as he felt a sharp stabbing pain in his head as though he’d been stabbed through both temples.

  
He looked up, vaguely seeing a man approaching through the glass and he recognized him as Drake Cannon as he closed in on Mil, taking aim with the weapon he had in his hand again.

  
“ _No_!” Duke started to cry out, and then the pain hit him again as the bullet or projectile tore into his head. The pain this time was a thousand times worse, and he shrieked his agony, falling back against the glass, feeling the rush of cool air as the tube was opened, hands grabbing at him, hauling him out as the world began to slide away from him.

  
Just before the darkness overtook him, Duke made a concerted effort, looking desperately around for Mil, who was lying on the floor, unmoving, with a crimson pool slowly growing beneath her and he saw a glimpse of a familiar face grinning at him just before the darkness closed in.

  
_William_ , he thought, and then nothing more.

* * *

 

In the Armory, Howard emerged from the thinny to face Vince and Croatoan.

  
“Where have you been?” Vince asked. “I’ve been trying to reach you and Duke for two days!”

  
“They took us to a factory facility that was located atop a closed chrossometer mine,” Howard told him. “Chrossometer in large quantities interferes with aether. We couldn’t leave.”

  
“Let me guess—Spiral?” Croatoan asked. Howard nodded. “I thought as much—Carter Durst’s little aether extremist group that allows him to get funding from the Council of Regents to fight against.”

  
“What do you mean?” Vince questioned sharply.

  
“Meaning they pay him to combat this network of so-called ‘saboteurs’ and aether extremists and the whole time, he’s the one calling the shots,” Croatoan stated. “It’s really quite brilliant—perhaps if I had thought of it first, I wouldn’t be in here now.”

  
“To what end?” Vince asked.

  
“Basically, he wants to take over the world,” Croatoan shrugged. “By unleashing the Troubles here, the Council of Regents will pay him anything—Hell, they’ll _do_ anything—to make all the insanity stop.”

  
“Are you telling me the Council would turn over the entire government for him to run to make the Troubles stop?” Vince goggled, and Croatoan nodded.

  
“But that’s not his end goal. Carter’s a greedy devil,” Croatoan huffed. “This world alone wouldn’t satisfy him.”

  
“He wants our world also,” Vince gasped, and Croatoan pointed at him, making a clicking sound.

  
“Give the man a cigar,” he quipped.

  
“How could he?” Howard stated. “The Armory has closed all thinnies to Otherworld.”

  
“Not once he fires up Genus they won’t be,” Croatoan said. “If I’m to understand how the thing works, once they can breach Aetherworld, _no_ world will be off-limits to him anymore. Thing is, though,” he mused, “they’ve never had a viable conduit to open the door with—that is, until now.”

  
“You mean Duke,” Vince got out, aghast.

  
“Two cigars,” Croatoan beamed, but there was no mirth in it. “If Genus goes active, it will make what happened in Haven and Newhaven seem like a minor inconvenience.”

  
“How can we stop them?” Vince asked him.

  
“You can’t,” Croatoan said briskly, and then gave him a sly smile. “Well, not without _my_ help, anyway.”

  
“Why should we trust you?” Howard said. “You saw no harm in raining down destruction on Haven before.”

  
“My daughter didn’t live there before,” Croatoan answered. “You know, your world may be little more than talking monkeys to me, but dammit, they are _her_ talking monkeys.”

  
Vince and Howard looked at one another for a long moment, and then Vince nodded assent.

  
“Cross me, though, Croatoan,” he warned, “and Solitary Confinement will be a breeze for what I can dream up.”

  
“We don’t stop Carter Durst, you won’t have an Armory left to confine me in,” Croatoan answered snappishly. “Besides, being blown to smithereens doesn’t sound like my idea of a good time. So—you boys ready to hear how to save the world one more time?” he grinned.

  
“I’m all ears, Dr. Cross,” Vince said.

* * *

 

Duke stirred, slowly regaining consciousness. He tried to move, but found he could not, due to the restraints holding him down firmly.

  
He opened his eyes, and found himself staring into what looked like a gigantic dental X-Ray machine, pointed directly at his head, which was locked into a cushioned vise. He could see he was shirtless, with similar straps crisscrossing his body, and his hands and feet locked into enclosed restraints.

  
He focused, trying to allow himself to return to his natural aether-state, but couldn’t seem to be able to.

  
“See, I told you he’d try to make a break for it,” he heard William say. “Give it up, Crocker,” he called. “We made those restraints special, just for you.”

  
He grinned at him, drawing closer.

  
“Gina’s post-suggestive hint to Millicent while she was asleep last night paid off,” he informed Duke. “Once you were in the learning tube, it was easy enough to catch you. I knew shooting you in the head wouldn’t kill you, you being aether and all, but it was enough to knock you out for a bit.”

  
“Where’s Mil?” Duke asked.

  
“Officer Chambers is in Surgery,” Dr. Mendelssohn answered calmly, adjusting some equipment near Duke’s head. “Her condition is serious, I believe. She was not supposed to have been injured, merely incapacitated.”

  
“I couldn’t get near enough to use a stunner, not with her Trouble working,” Duke heard Drake say from somewhere in the lab. “So I used the next best alternative. I misjudged-my mistake.”

  
“Y-Your mistake? You _shot_ her, you bastard!” Duke ground out savagely, spying Winters in the corner. “And you don’t you even _care_ he shot your partner!”

  
“Mil shouldn’t have been helping you to try to escape,” Winters answered in a dreamy tone, and Duke knew that Regina had been right in her prediction that she had him under her control. “I’m sorry she was hurt, but she shouldn’t have tried to help you escape.”

  
“I wasn’t trying to escape! I was learning—“Duke began, but a foreign voice interrupted him.

  
“If you wanted to learn about our society, Duke, all you had to do was ask,” the voice said. “Set him up, please.”

  
The dental X-Ray thing was moved out of his face, and the table Duke was strapped down on began to incline at his feet until he was face-to-face with what looked like an older version of William.

  
“You must be Daddy Durst,” Duke growled.

  
“I am Carter Durst, yes,” the man replied. “And you are this famous Duke Crocker that William’s told me so much about,” he went on, looking Duke over. “Doug Cross’ little pet project. You know, I thought he was nuts, doing it how he did, but he got results. It took him a while, but he got results. However, I think that you and I working together can do things quite a bit faster,” he gestured at the machinery around Duke.

  
“I’m out of the business of killing people,” Duke told him.

  
“Who said anything about killing people?” Carter asked, slightly alarmed. “That was Dr. Cross’ big flaw in his plan, killing them to collect their aether. They’re no good to us dead, not in the long run,” he said. “While technically, people _are_ a renewable resource, it’s better to keep the ones you have already alive, instead of relying on a twenty-seven year cycle.”

  
Duke would have pointed out that the Barn was actually _Charlotte’s_ idea; not Croatoan’s, and was designed to stop Troubles, not start them, but said nothing.

  
“But I understand; your world’s technology certainly wasn’t up to par 500 years ago. To be honest, it still isn’t. But ours was not as advanced back then either, in all fairness.”

  
“But things are different now,” Duke sneered.

  
“Oh, yes, indeed, my friend, they are very different now,” Carter replied. “Genus is finished, now that we have the key component in making it operational.”

  
“And what would that be?”

  
“You, dear boy,” Carter answered. “You’re going to open that door between here and Aetherworld, right now, today. And then we are going to enter a new age of learning,” he gestured grandly, the others in the lab all nodding agreement. “Historically, scientifically—we will become the most advanced society in the history of the known universe.”

  
“Uh-huh,” Duke said sarcastically. “Take it from me—the Troubles help nobody. I should know.”

  
“Your problem, Duke, is that you still think like you’re an Otherworld human—you are not an Otherworld human, not anymore. You’re almost—god-like,” Carter told him, drawing nearer to him. “You’re the first of your kind-a true fusion of your race and aether. You can do anything, simply by envisioning it—and yet you still continue to think of yourself as human. You are beholden to no one. No one has control over you,” he continued. “Why not give the opportunity of becoming like you to the rest of us?”

  
“I’m no god,” Duke answered. “I’m just some dumb cluck who died under the right circumstances with the right amount of aether in his body. Don’t do this. You’ll do nothing but destroy your own world, and probably mine as well.”

  
“With any great change comes great chaos; I’m certain it was the same in your world as it is in ours,” Carter answered, nonplussed. “I’m sure something of our world soaked into you while you were in that learning tube,” he informed him. “You probably learned enough to know that while we are very advanced, we do have some rather old-fashioned ideas concerning medicines—without risk, there are no scientific breakthroughs. Where would the scientists of your world be if they had not pushed the boundaries? You would still be dying en masse from Smallpox and Polio. Instead, those diseases have been all but eradicated from your world.”

  
“The Troubles are not scientific, they’re not a learning experience, they’re called Troubles for a _reason_ ,” Duke stressed, knowing he was fighting a losing battle trying to reason with them. He was angry now; the realization sinking in that William had teamed up with Mara to Trouble people in his world in the first place was to learn how Troubles worked.

“You tormented my people for 500 years with the Troubles,” he said, straining against his restraints. “The only thing they brought was death, heartache and destruction. Is that what you want for your family? Mara’s loss meant nothing to you?” he directed at William, who flinched, but only slightly.

  
“I do regret the loss of Dr. Cross’ daughter-Will cared for her a great deal,” Carter stated. “And Dr. Cross’ loss as well-he was a brilliant man. I think he would have liked to see the culmination of his work here today,” he continued.

  
He looked up at Dr. Mendelssohn.

  
“Are we about ready to begin, Doctor?” he asked.

  
“Nearly ready,” was Mendelssohn’s reply, and Duke’s table lowered itself back down; the X-Ray thing pointed back at his head once more.

  
“I will _never_ help you,” Duke said angrily.

  
Carter Durst smiled down at him, and Duke felt a chill pass through his whole being.

  
“Yes, you will,” he answered. “You will because you have no choice. Start the countdown.”


	18. Home Sweet Haven

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 18** _   
_**"Home Sweet Haven"** _

 

_**11 April** _

  
_So, here I am, about to be an unwilling participant in the first outer-realm exploration. I've no desire to be Major Tom, so I am hoping Vince and Howard have something up their sleeves besides their arms!_

 

The three men emerged from the Armory and Croatoan stretched his arms over his head, inhaling deeply.

  
"Nice to be home again," he exhaled, looking at Howard and Vince. "You've missed this place too, Byron, admit it."

  
"We have a job to do," Howard answered instead. "Vincent, can you locate Duke?"

  
Vince shook his head. "Wherever they have him, I can't see there."

  
"That would be due to the interference from the chrossometer mine, as Byron told you," Croatoan stated patiently. "What we need is some aether—or rather, I need some aether."

  
"I think that is highly inadvisable," Vince said severely and Croatoan rolled his eyes.

  
"I can use it to find Duke," he explained.

  
"But people are Troubled here also, there would be too much interference from their aether," Howard put in, but Croatoan shook his head.

  
"I'm not going to use it to _find_ a Trouble," he told them. "I can direct it to act like a homing pigeon to the highest concentration of aether here--presumably, that will lead us straight to Duke."

  
"He has a point—aether would be drawn to Duke’s location," Howard mused.

  
"Don't you still have the connection you had with him previously?" Vince asked, still suspicious.

  
"No, Duke was right on that point; when he died, that connection was broken," Croatoan answered. "Now, either we stand here and continue to play Twenty Questions, or we can get down to business and find Duke before they use him to breach Aetherworld."

  
Vince grudgingly nodded agreement, and produced a vial containing one black orb within it, and handed it to Croatoan, who removed it, held it to his lips, whispering something to it, and released it, the orb flying swiftly west.

  
"Now what do we do?" Vince said.

  
"Now, unfortunately," Croatoan frowned. "We wait for it to get back."

  
"How long will that take?"

  
Croatoan shrugged. "Long as it takes."

* * *

 

"I'm sure you must be curious as to how all this is going to work," Carter Durst was saying to Duke as Dr. Mendelssohn and the Cannon siblings readied the machinery.

  
"You said I could do anything I wanted, right?" Duke asked. "So what makes you think I would help you?"

  
"True enough," Carter ceded. "I did say that; and normally, you could do whatever you wanted. But when William told me of your tendency to have a rather truculent and recalcitrant attitude, I knew we'd have to be clever about gaining your assistance. So we set barbs into the Troubles that you cured. You undoubtedly noticed how difficult they were to remove from yourself, and became increasingly so with each Trouble you removed."

  
"You did that deliberately?" Duke said.

  
"Each barb served to weaken the positive charge you had over your aether," Carter went on.

  
Duke watched Meredith load what looked like a large syringe that he could see was filled with aether and that Thomas also had a similar syringe.

  
"Pardon me a moment," Dr. Mendelssohn murmured, ducking past Carter and swabbing Duke's arm with a dampened pad and inserted a long, thin needle into the vein, moving around to the other side of the table.

  
"I'm guessing that's not positively charged aether," Duke muttered, wincing as the second needle was inserted.

  
“No, it is not positively charged,” Carter chuckled.

  
Duke struggled in vain to get loose, but the restraints held him firmly.

  
Carter looked up at Mendelssohn.

  
“You’re sure this is going to work?” he asked.

  
“This is all theory, Mr. Durst,” Mendelssohn told him. “We haven’t had test subjects to try it out on, remember. We have one chance, until we can duplicate a similar conduit.”

  
“Where are you in that?”

  
“So far, all results have failed,” Mendelssohn answered, and Duke couldn’t help but wonder how many poor souls had met their end for the sake of their ‘experimentations’.

  
“Maybe we need another Otherworlder,” Carter thought aloud.

  
“We tried that; it didn’t work out with Mathis,” William replied. “Maybe what we need is another him,” he gestured at Duke.

  
“Unfortunately, his line is extinguished, from what I understand,” Carter told him.

  
“No, there’s still one little Crocker left in Otherworld,” William answered, grinning, and Duke thrashed viciously on the table.

  
“You leave Jean alo—“he began to shout, and Mendelssohn inserted a bite guard into his mouth, muffling Duke’s angry shouts.

  
“ _Initiating sequence in 5…4…_ ” the electronic voice intoned. The syringe plungers activated, and Duke felt the burn of the foreign aether being introduced into his body.

  
“Nobody move!” he heard Vince exclaim as he, Howard and Croatoan emerged from the thinny that had opened in the room, Howard holding a very large and ugly-looking weapon.

  
"Duke," Vince gasped, seeing what they were doing to him. He had turned almost a grayish color, his veins darkening to black beneath his skin from the overload of aether in his body, his eyes coal-black.

  
Drake moved menacingly towards them, weapon in hand, and then vanished in a red haze as Howard discharged the weapon.

  
" _Drake!_ " Meredith shrieked.

  
“Anyone else want to be a hero?” Howard snarled.

  
“Unstrap him— _now_!” Vince gestured at Mendelssohn.

  
“You can’t interrupt the sequence,” he got out.

  
" _Three...two._.." the voice counted.

  
“It’s too late to stop it."

  
“ _One_ ,” the voice intoned, and suddenly there was a high-pitched whine as the device pointed at Duke’s head began to glow.

  
Duke felt as though his heart was going to burst out of his chest. He was only vaguely aware now, feeling as though he were seeing the world through a black mist, somehow knowing that it was the aether that was struggling to overtake him. He managed to turn his head, seeing the blackish veins in his arms, feeling the aether in his body synchronizing with the chrossometer stones that had been built into the machine, and he felt himself drifting away.

  
“Get him out of there!” Vince urged.

  
“I can’t, it’s too late,” Mendelssohn said.

  
“Who are you people?” Carter blurted, and then gasped when he recognized Croatoan. “ _Dr. Cross_?”

  
“I see you’re still up to your old tricks, eh, Carter?” Croatoan answered, going to the keypad, looking it over. “He’s right, we can’t shut this thing down, it’s already synced up with Duke,” he went on, busily clicking away at the keypad.

  
“What are you doing?” Vince asked anxiously.

  
“Trying to save him, believe it or not,” Croatoan cracked.

  
The beeping stopped, and suddenly the ray flared to life. There was a brilliant flash, and Duke vanished from the table.

  
“It worked!” Carter cheered, eagerly turning to the large thinny that had appeared, to find he was staring at—the roof line of a night-darkened town, and Vince smiled slightly as the thinny closed immediately.

  
“You sent him to Haven,” he said.

  
“Only place I could think of where we could get him back,” Croatoan replied, touching the keypad. “But we’ll have to be quick; he’s full of unstable aether, so who the hell knows what could happen.”

  
“Well, we’ll see who gets there first,” Carter answered, conjuring a thinny and William, Regina and Meredith and he all vanished into it.

  
Off in the corner, Winters staggered as though he had just woken up and was unsure of where he was.

  
“Wh-what’s happening?” he asked.

  
“There is no time to explain,” Vince said. “Chief Reynolds is en route to here; you must give this to him,” he went on, handing him a sphere. “Go,” he urged, and Winters flew out into the hallway as Croatoan finished tinkering with the keypad.

  
“We should go too,” he said, as the ray began beeping loudly.

  
“You’re overheating the core! I have to stop it!” Mendelssohn protested, reaching for it, but Vince delivered a swift blow to the back of his head, dropping him.

  
“Why, Mr. Teagues, I’m impressed,” Croatoan said, smiling, but Vince didn’t return it.

  
“Get him and let’s get out of here,” Vince stated. “We have to find Duke before they do.”

* * *

 

Somewhere in a dank sea cave, Duke stirred. He felt as though he could barely move, but he could hear the sound of surf lapping against a beach, and he struggled to sit upright. He still could not see very well, and felt the aether surging at him as though it was trying to break out of him, but he fought against it.

  
_Where am I?_ he thought weakly. _It's weird...this place almost feels like...Haven._

  
The aether surged angrily in his body, and Duke remembered how it had felt when he could feel the pain and pressure of needing to relieve a Trouble.

  
He suppressed that terrible urge once more, and the aether receded.

  
_I don't care what world this is, I'm not doing that again,_ he thought, flopping back down into the wet seaweed and darkness overtook him once more.

* * *

 

Stan Bannerman was heading home after a relatively quiet day. He’d broken up a bar fight at The Rust Bucket earlier, and was still nursing sore knuckles from having to subdue a very drunken Caleb Halleck, and was just driving past Armory Park.

  
He glanced over momentarily at where the Armory had once been, before slamming on his brakes and coming to a squealing stop.

  
_The Armory was standing there again._

  
Stan stared at it dumbfounded for a few more moments, and then fumbled with the handset.

  
“Um, Laverne—you still there?” he squeaked.

  
“Yeah, hon, I was just heading out,” she said. “What’s up, Stan?”

  
“W-Would you radio Nathan at home? It's really important.”

  
“What do you want me to tell him? Do you need backup?”

  
“No, no backup. Tell him,” Stan said, drawing a deep steadying breath. “Tell him--" he exhaled. "Tell Nathan the Armory’s back.”


	19. Same Old Situation

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 19** _   
_**"Same Old Situation"** _

_**19 June** _

  
_I told you time shifts around, so don't act like I didn't warn you. (Although truth be told, it kinda trips me out too)._

 

When Duke awoke again, it was still dark out. He sat up, still groggy, glancing down at himself; glad he couldn't see his reflection. The moon was full however, and he staggered out onto the beach.

  
_I must look like death warmed over_ , Duke thought, seeing his brackish-gray color, the dark veins in his arms. Is this what aether poisoning looks like? He remembered seeing the mention of it in the learning tube, and was again reminded of how the people who'd died from Nikki Coleman's Toxic Fear Trouble had looked.

  
He peered cautiously out of the sea cave he'd been ensconced in, and was relieved to find himself alone on the rocky spit of beach. Further up the beach, he spotted a shack, and noticed there was clothing that had been left out on the line.

  
Duke nicked the hoodie that was drying there, grateful it was mostly dry, and quickly pulled it over his head, drawing the hood close around his face.

  
"I swear to God this looks just like Landry's Cove," he muttered, taking in the scenery as he walked around to the front of the shack and stopped in his tracks, taking in the town ahead of him.

  
"Because it _is_ Landry's Cove," he finished. "I'm in Haven."

  
He thought of taking the vehicle parked in the driveway, but decided against it, when he caught his reflection in the glass, illuminated by the moon. Was he crazy, or was he actually _gray_?

  
"Well, aren't you attractive," he remarked to his reflection.

  
He searched his pockets in vain, hoping to find the fragment of chrossometer stone he’d gotten from Howard, hoping to find his way back to the Armory, but it was gone, and he sighed deeply, thinking.

  
He remembered he had a safe house that he’d used when he was alive that was about a half mile from Landry’s Cove; with luck, it would still be empty, and he headed for the road, keeping to the shadows.

  
“Well, I can't go into town like this, that's for sure,” he said to no one. “The best I can do is go hide and hope Vince finds me."

* * *

 

 

Nathan and Dwight arrived at the Armory at nearly the same time, staring at it dumbfounded.

  
“You want me to stick around, Chief?” Stan asked nervously.

  
“No, take off. Keep this _quiet,_ Stan,” Nathan ordered gently, and Stan nodded understanding before driving away.

  
“Nate,” Dwight prodded, and Nathan turned to see Vince and Howard emerge from the Armory, and walked towards them before stopping a few paces away.

  
"Hello, Nathan. Dwight," Vince said.

  
"I would say nice to see you again Vince, but your being here can't mean anything good," Dwight answered.

  
"No, it doesn't," Vince replied.

  
"Why are you here?" Nathan asked.

  
"There is a situation," Vince began. "We came to retrieve Duke."

  
"Duke? Duke's dead, you know that," Dwight said, and then stopped, seeing their expression. "Wait--he _is_ dead--right?"

  
"Duke's alive?" Nathan breathed. "When, how? Wh-where is he?"

  
"Croatoan sent him back here. I think it would be best if we talked about this as we look for him. We are not the only ones searching for Duke. But we will need additional help." he went on, turning back to the entrance, and Croatoan walked out.

  
"What is _he_ doing out?" Nathan demanded angrily.

  
"Nice to see you too, Nathan," Croatoan replied. "How is Paige?"

  
"She and James are fine. Home, wondering why I had to leave so suddenly," Nathan retorted. "Why are you here?"

  
"We'd better get moving," Croatoan said, peering around as though he could see something they couldn’t. "They're here already."

  
" _Who_ is here already?" Dwight blurted out, mystified.

  
"Perhaps we should talk about this on the way," Vince suggested, gesturing toward Nathan's Bronco. "Dwight, it is imperative that we locate Duke. Alert the Guard to help us; instruct them that if they find him, they’re not to touch him, don't even approach him, just let us know where he is, and we'll take care of him."

  
"What have you done to him?" Nathan demanded, and Vince could see the tears standing in his eyes. "It wasn't enough he _died_ , you had to bring him back to life to make him suffer more?" he snarled at them.

  
"It's not what we did to him; it was the people who are looking for him," Howard spoke up.

  
"Look, long story short, the bad people are looking for Duke. They hurt him, they want to hurt him some more, we need to find him first before he erupts and unleashes a new round of Troubles that even _I_ couldn’t fix," Croatoan said succinctly. "We're wasting time here--let's go."

  
“Vincent, you and Dr. Cross go and search for Duke. I’ll stay here in case he tries to make contact,” Howard said, and Vince nodded before turning back to head toward Nathan’s Bronco.

 

* * *

 

 

Duke fumbled around, feeling under the rock, locating the key that he’d hidden there ages ago, it seemed, and let himself inside.

  
The safe house was still empty, fortunately, and he closed all the curtains, keeping the lights off before going into the bathroom to get a better look at himself. He peeled the hood back, and gasped when he saw himself.

  
“What the hell did you people do to me?” he gasped, taking in the ghastly reflection in front of him in the mirror. The gray had faded down considerably but the veins beneath his skin were as black at the aether that was coursing through them. His eyes were no longer solid black, but instead looked as though someone had dropped India ink into them, the interior of his mouth and gums also blackish as though he’d been eating licorice, and Duke found himself reminded of a reanimated corpse.

  
_Happy Halloween, Crocker,_ he thought. He knew it was the excess aether in him that was causing him to look like this; but he didn’t dare try to expel it, not without being in the Barn or the Void, one. He felt the pain behind his eyes, and he fought back against it.

  
“No,” he groaned. “You are not coming out—not here, so you might as well settle down.”

  
After a few moments, the pain passed, and Duke straightened up, making his way back to the sofa, feeling hot and achy. He wished he had a phone; then he could call Nathan for help. _But what would I say?_ Duke thought. _Hey, Nate, I’m back from the dead and I think I have aether poisoning, would you call Vince for me, please?_

 

* * *

 

 

‘Haven’ Joe Flaherty was on his way in to open Haven Joe’s, when he encountered the four people outside his shop, two men and two women.

  
The oldest man stepped up, smiling.

  
“Good morning,” he greeted.

  
"Morning, folks. I’m afraid I won’t be open for a little while yet,” Haven Joe said.

  
“Oh, that’s all right,” one of the women said, linking her arm in his. “We didn’t come for the coffee. But we’d love to visit.”

  
Joe smiled, and ushered them all inside.

 

* * *

 

 

“So let me get this straight,” Dwight said. “You made a Duke aether-man to help be some sort of guardian against aether escape and to head off any more potential Troublings. But it didn’t work?”

  
“The aether-man as you call him is truly Duke,” Vince explained. “When he died, he—“

  
“It’s a very long story,” Croatoan sighed. “Yes, it is the Duke you all know and love, back to life, after a fashion. Only he’s not flesh and blood anymore like you lot, he’s aether. He’s a rather special blend of the stuff, actually, and that has made him very desirable to an extremist group in my world.”

  
“I thought _you_ were the extremist of your world,” Nathan retorted.

  
“I am not the _only_ person who was involved in aether research,” Croatoan said stiffly. “Just the one who’d made the most progress with it at the time I was sentenced to the Void. Things change over 500 years, you know.”

  
“So who are these people looking for Duke?” Dwight questioned.

  
“One you already know,” Vince said.

  
“William,” Nathan growled. “I knew I should’ve left him in the Void.”

  
“Apparently, it’s not just him—his father and sister are also involved,” Vince told him. “Are you sensing him?” he asked Croatoan.

  
“Somewhere near water is all I’m picking up,” Croatoan said.

  
“That’s half of Haven,” Dwight remarked. “And I thought you two were—“

  
“No, we are no longer connected,” Croatoan finished for him.

  
“Because he _died_ ,” Nathan ground out, and Croatoan gave him a dirty look. “Duke died to break your hold on him.”

  
“Not going to let it go, are we, Nate?” he asked.

  
“Not in this lifetime,” Nathan shot back through gritted teeth.

  
“You can’t get anything more than he’s near water?” Vince asked.

  
“Well, _you_ try, Vincent,” Croatoan retorted.

  
“I have tried—both Howard and I have been trying,” Vince snapped angrily. “Duke is not answering. He may not be able to.”

  
“Why did you send him back here anyway?” Dwight asked.

  
Croatoan gave an angry sigh and was silent a moment before he spoke.

  
“I sent him here because, one, I knew it would be an area he was familiar with, and two, because we would have people who I presumed would help us look for him without trying to hurt him—because they cared about him,” he finished softly. “If Carter Durst and the others get to him first, they’re going to force him into opening that door into the Aether Realm.”

  
“You mean the Void,” Dwight said.

  
“No, the Aether Realm is where the aether in the Void comes from,” Howard told them. “It is the font from which all aether comes.”

  
“If Duke erupts from the overload of aether they’ve pumped into him, he will open that door,” Croatoan told them. “And it won’t just be Haven that will be affected, it will be worldwide—yours _and_ mine.”

  
He sighed angrily. “I can’t feel him,” he said in a low voice, and then thought of something. “But I know who could.”

  
Vince looked at him, understanding dawning in his eyes.

  
“Of course—he always trusted in her before,” he mused. “He’d respond to her call, I’m sure of it.”

  
“He’d respond to whose call?” Dwight questioned suspiciously.

  
Vince gazed at him.

  
“Audrey’s.”

  
“But Audrey is not Audrey anymore, she’s Paige now,” Nathan protested. “She doesn’t remember Duke—at all.”

  
“But she could,” Croatoan replied.

  
“I would never ask this if her help was not crucial,” Vince told him. “But we have to ask it of her. Paige has the right to refuse; if she does, we will find him another way.”

  
“What if I refuse?” Nathan interrogated.

  
“This is a little bigger than your concerns, Nathan,” Croatoan told him. “When we’re done, we will put Paige back like nothing ever happened, and take Duke and go.”

  
Nathan’s mouth tightened in a thin line.

  
“You can ask,” he uttered. “But if Paige says no, that’s the end of it—you don’t push, you don’t ask again.”

  
“Agreed,” Vince replied.

  
“Agreed,” Croatoan said. “But either way, we need to hurry.”


	20. Roundabout

_The Crocker Chronicles_   
_Chapter 21_   
_“Roundabout”_

_ 10 June _

  
_So far, nobody’s conjured up a fog shroud around Haven yet, so there’s that. But how much longer can I hold out-or hold William and his extraterrestrial Manson family at bay?_

 

Gloria stirred on the sofa. She was beginning to come to, and felt someone place a cool cloth on her forehead.

  
“Take it easy, old woman,” she heard a voice say. “You scared the hell out of me out there on the porch.”

  
Gloria cautiously eased the cloth from over her eyes, staring at the man sitting next to her. 

 

“You’re a hallucination—I’ve finally drank myself into the D.T.’s,” she moaned.“I am not a D.T.,” Duke grinned, and then sobered. “I’m really here, Gloria,” he told her, touching her hand, and she clutched it.

  
“You’re real,” she half-sobbed. “Oh, God, you’re really there,” she cried, touching his face before she crushed him against her in a hug.

  
Duke let her cry for a few moments before he gently disentangled himself from her grasp.

  
“Okay. It’s okay, Gloria. Here, let go,” Duke murmured. “I don’t want you to get any of the black stuff on you.”

  
“What the hell happened to you, honey?” she asked through her tears, examining the black veins that traced along his face and neck, and then withdrew her hands. “Did—did Croatoan do this? You have to fight that-that bastard, Duke; don’t let him make you _do_ those things!”

  
“Croatoan didn’t do this to me,” he assured her.

  
She looked at him curiously. “You’re not a zombie, are you?”

  
“Most zombies don’t talk, Gloria. And if I were one, I’d be trying to have you for breakfast, not getting you a drink,” Duke scolded affectionately, handing her a brandy, which she swallowed half of in one gulp.

  
“Point taken,” she ceded. “But you’re hurt, Kitten—let me see.”

  
“No, I don’t want you to touch it. Do you have any of that medical adhesive stuff?” Duke questioned. “This needs to be sutured, but I don’t want any additional holes in me from needles.”

  
“That looks a lot like a bullet wound,” she remarked as she got up, getting out her medical kit and sliding on her gloves. “Care to tell me what happened? How are you here, Duke?” she asked, her eyes on his. “What the hell happened to make you look like this?”

  
“Vince—brought me back,” Duke began. “I’m a sort of guardian for the Armory.”

  
“Why? Did he trap you into it?”

  
“No, he asked me, and I accepted the job. I was to act as a safeguard against someone wanting to re-start the Troubles.”

  
“And someone did,” Gloria guessed.

  
Duke nodded. “Our old pal William. It seems he’s got family that likes to experiment with aether too. Long story short, they got their hands on me; that’s why I look like this,” he gestured.

  
“How nice they’ve found a family activity they can all enjoy,” Gloria said sarcastically, coming back with a medical bag. “All right, Kitten, I want you to use your other hand and squeeze the wound together while I put the adhesive on it, okay?”

  
“All right,” Duke grunted. “I don’t understand-this isn’t supposed to happen to me. I’m not flesh and blood anymore.”

  
“You feel real enough to me,” Gloria commented.

  
“I-I know, I was designed to be as much like the old me as I ever was, but any wounds I receive are supposed to just close up. This one isn’t doing that,” Duke puzzled.

  
“Why?”

  
“I don’t know. My guess would be it’s this stuff they pumped into me.”

  
“Can’t you excise it?”

  
“You know what happened the last time I let aether out,” Duke said meaningfully.

  
“Okay, scratch that thought,” Gloria said. “Where is Vince?”

  
“Audrey—“

  
“ _Audrey_!” Gloria exclaimed. “I swear that girl needs to issue programs so we can keep up with who she is from day to day,” Gloria griped, making Duke grin. “She’s Audrey, Sarah, Lucy, Mara, Paige, she’ll probably be someone named Harriet tomorrow.”

  
She relented, and touched Duke’s cheek.

  
“But there was always one person who never changed who he was,” she smiled sadly, and Duke put his hand on hers, and held it in his own, giving it a small kiss, his expression wistful.

  
“You can’t stay, can you?” she asked, her eyes bright.

  
“No, I can’t stay,” Duke replied softly. “That version of Duke Crocker really is gone. I’m not even supposed to be here in Haven—Vince had closed all the thinnies. I was supposed to have ended up somewhere else, but instead, I landed here.”

  
Gloria’s phone rang, and she glanced at it.

  
“It’s Nathan,” she said.

  
“Answer it, they’re looking for me,” Duke told her.

  
She picked up her phone. “Yeah, Nathan.”

  
“Gloria, we might need your help in—“

  
“If you’re talking about Duke, he’s here,” she said.

  
“He’s there?” Nathan exclaimed.

  
“What?” Dwight puzzled.

  
“She said he’s there at her house,” Nathan told Vince.

  
“She lives close by Landry’s Cove, makes sense he’d go there,” Vince remarked.

  
Duke was peering out of the curtains, and could see the Haven PD squad car slowly patrolling down the street, and another car parked behind it, with Regina and Meredith going door-to-door.

  
“I have to go,” Duke said.

  
“Wait just a minute, you can’t just run out of here!” Gloria protested.

  
Duke hustled her to the window and showed her.

  
“You see those two? The woman with the gray streak  is William’s sister, Regina; the blonde’s name is Meredith. They can affect people, make them tell or do anything they say.”

  
“They won’t get the drop on me,” Gloria growled. Duke gave her a faint smile.

  
“Meredith’s Trouble is like Brody’s, magnified,” Duke replied. “And Regina can not only read your mind, she can make you do anything she says. So I gotta go,” he told her, seeing the tears in her eyes. “Tell Nathan—“he paused, thinking. “Tell Nathan to meet me where he threw up after the junior prom.”

  
“Where’s that?”

  
“He’ll know. If I tell you, _she’ll_ know. I have to go,” Duke got out, and hugged Gloria again. “This is for in case I don’t get to see you before I leave again—thank you for everything, Gloria,” he whispered in her ear. He brushed her tears away, and kissed her cheek. “We kind of didn’t get to say goodbye before.”

  
Gloria sniffled, and nodded, unable to speak, and kissed his face one last time before Duke grabbed the shirt she’d brought him and darted swiftly out of the back door as she heard Regina’s knock at the front.

  
Gloria dried her eyes and picked up the phone, where Nathan was shouting himself hoarse: "Gloria! Are you still there? What's going on?"

  
“That woman’s here that’s looking for him,” she said all in a rush. “Duke says to meet him where you threw up after junior prom, wherever that is,” she finished, and hung up.

  
“All right, ladies,” she said to the silhouettes at the door. “Let’s get this over with.”

 

* * *

 

 

Dwight’s phone began to ring, and he answered it.

  
“Yeah, McHugh,” he said, his face growing grim. “All right, get on it,” he told him, and hung up.

  
“McHugh says a couple of new Troubles just popped up,” he told the people in the Bronco.

  
“Once we get Duke to safety, it should pull them out of the people,” Vince replied. “We just have to find him first.”

  
“Well, we’re not far from there now,” Nathan said, turning the wheel so fast the Bronco’s tires squealed on the asphalt, and he saw a familiar figure duck behind some crates.

  
They came to a stop outside of Pufahl’s Repairs, and Nathan and Dwight climbed out, pistols in hand as they made their way around to the back, Vince and Croatoan following closely behind.

  
“So this is where you threw up, huh?” Dwight grinned.

  
“That’s what I get for trying to prove I was ‘one of the guys,” Nathan grumbled. “Want to guess who was responsible?”

  
“I’ve got a pretty good idea,” Dwight chuckled.

  
They rounded the corner of the building, seeing all the pallets piled everywhere.

  
“Duke?” Nathan called out softly. “Duke, are you here?”

  
“Here,” they heard a faint voice behind a stack of pallets.

  
“Come out, the coast is clear,” Nathan told him.

  
“Can’t…too tired.”

  
Dwight and Nathan hurriedly began moving pallets aside.

  
“Quietly, quietly,” Vince scolded.

  
Nathan spotted Duke’s shirt, and tossed the last pallet aside before he and Dwight both gasped at Duke’s appearance.

  
“Oh dear,” Vince murmured. Duke’s gray color had returned, and he looked exhausted.

  
Nathan bent down to him, putting his arms around Duke, helping him to his feet, Dwight taking his other side.

  
“You look terrible,” Nathan grinned. “But it is good to see you again, Duke.”

  
“Mm,” Duke mumbled faintly. “At least it matches how I feel.”

  
“We need to get him back to the Armory, pronto,” Vince said. “Then we can do something about this.”

  
“Let me help,” Croatoan spoke. “I’m not going to do anything, other than help alleviate the pressure. It’s hurting you, isn’t it?” he asked Duke, who gave a weak nod.

  
“Yeah, it does,” he answered. “But I—“

  
“I am not going to potentially endanger my daughter or my grandson,” Croatoan said sternly. “Have a little trust for once.”

  
“You haven’t exactly got a stellar track record,” Duke groused, but softened. “But come to think of it, neither do I,” he ceded.

  
“Try to help him, if you can,” Vince added.

  
Croatoan gently put a hand on Duke’s head, focusing intently, and Duke’s grayish color and black veins vanished instantly, returning him to normal before taking his hand off again.

  
“Feel better?” he asked.

  
“Good as new,” Duke replied, straightening up. “Did you pull all that out of me?”

  
“No, actually the aether is still there,” Croatoan replied. “I gave it a boost.”

  
“You gave it a boost?” Nathan startled.

  
“A boost of positive energy-it will help Duke to heal himself. But it won’t last for long,” he warned. “That stuff’s pretty strong—but Duke is made of pretty strong stuff himself,” he smiled. “You can beat it, you know. In fact, that’s how you can beat them,” he gestured at nothing. “They want you to open the door into the Aether Realm, and you can. But,” he held up his hand to ward off everyone’s protests. “You can do it on Duke Crocker’s terms.”

  
“Focus and intent,” Duke said softly, and felt some of the frostiness between the two of them dissolve. He realized that Croatoan was right; and he also knew how he could put a stop to all this—not just today, but for good.


	21. Home Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vince and Croatoan resort to drastic measures--and Duke seeks shelter from an old friend

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 20** _   
_**"Home Again”** _

_**19 June** _

  
_Well, I have figured it out--this is definitely aether poisoning I have. Maybe Vince or Howie have something in their supernatural medicine cabinet to cure me with--preferably something other than Dr. Douglas 'Croatoan' Cross._

 

Duke shifted, restless on the sofa. He was feeling worse now; he’d begun to realize that the negatively charged aether in his body had given up on trying to force him into expelling it and it was now trying to overtake the positive aether of his makeup.

  
_I can't let it,_ he reflected. _Otherwise, everything we sacrificed was all for nothing. But if I don’t get help soon_ —he didn’t get a chance to finish the thought as he felt something damp on his face, and scrabbled a hand out from under the blanket just in time to retrieve a globule of aether that had managed to find its way out, sliding down his nose.

  
He clutched it tightly in his fist, squishing it flat, watching it reabsorb into his body, disappearing beneath his skin once more, and he felt the pain return. With his old Trouble, it had felt euphoric, absorbing the aether through the blood of those he’d killed. Now it had a searing, intense pain that burned like fire inside of him.

  
"C'mon, Vince," he groaned. "Hurry up already."

 

* * *

 

 

Nathan pulled up in front of the little yellow house he owned, and Paige came out to meet them, baby James in her arms.

  
Croatoan smiled when he saw them.

  
"Hello, Paige," he greeted.

  
"Do I know you?" she asked, and to Nathan's surprise, he blinked hard a couple of times before answering.

  
"No, I suppose you wouldn’t remember me," he answered. “But I most assuredly remember you.”

  
"Paige, this is Vince Teagues and--Dr. Cross," Nathan introduced them. "They've come to talk to you about--something."

  
"Please, come inside," Paige gestured, her face concerned.

 

* * *

 

Haven Joe brought round the coffee pot in hand.

  
“Joe, this is awfully nice of you to do this for us,” Officer Rebecca Rafferty smiled as he refilled her cup, as part of his sudden Haven Law Enforcement Appreciation Day suggested by Meredith and Regina.

  
“Aw, it’s the least I could do for Haven PD,” Joe answered.

  
Carter Durst watched from the corner table where he was sitting, a small smile playing around his lips as he watched the police men and women drinking the brew that he had specially made, and he glanced at Regina.

  
“You’re on, my love,” he murmured, and Regina nodded, and stood up.

  
“Good morning,” she cheerfully greeted the small crowd of officers.

  
“Good morning,” was the murmur among the crowd.

  
“I would like to ask a favor of you all,” she began, and unfolded a picture of Duke. “We are searching for this man,” she continued.

  
“That’s Duke Crocker, we all know him,” Frank Duncan said. “But he died over a year ago, Miss.”

  
“I know that’s the general belief, that he died, but he faked his own death,” Regina went on, focusing her ability and the group of officers’ faces all registered recognition. “He’s been—very ill, and under Dr. Durst’s care at the facility,” she continued.

"Does he have something contagious?" Milchek asked.

 

"No, he isn't _physically_ ill," Regina spoke. 

  
“This sounds like something Duke would do,” Rafferty answered. “It’s not the first time he’s been thought to be dead.”

  
“Yes, he’s a slippery customer,” Regina smiled. “He’s been under care, and he feels that he’s cured, but he’s not.”

  
“Is he dangerous?” another officer asked, reaching for his shoulder walkie-talkie to radio Nathan. 

  
“No, no—if he feels he’s being persecuted, you’ll undo _months_ of intensive work,” Carter Durst put in, sounding concerned but authoritative.

  
“We just need you to help us find him,” Regina smiled. “If you do, I want you to come straight back here and report to us where he is. Could we count on you to do that?”  
Carter suppressed another smile, knowing that between the coffee he’d brewed and Regina’s Trouble, the officers of Haven PD would turn over their own children if she’d asked them to.

* * *

 

 

“Please sit down,” Paige motioned to the living room sofa.

  
Vince took in the wedding picture that hung over the fireplace and the assortment of photos on the mantle, his eyes resting on an older picture of Nathan and Duke, alongside Duke’s boat whistle laced around a display stand beneath a glass cloche.

  
Paige noticed what he was looking at.

  
“He was a friend of Nathan’s--he died,” she said. “Did you know him?”

  
“Oh yes,” Vince answered warmly. “I knew him quite well.”

  
“Paige, Vince and-Dr. Cross,” Nathan managed to say, “have something they’d like to talk with you about.”

  
“Well, would you take James?” she asked. “I think he’s wet,” she stage whispered and Nathan took him into his arms.

  
“C’mon, buddy,” Nathan grunted, hefting James in his arms. “I won’t hurt you,” he went on, his eyes on Vince, asking the same question of Vince silently.

  
“Not a bit,” Vince smiled. He glanced at Croatoan, who nodded, and Vince produced a small box from his pocket, and placed it Paige’s hands.

  
“What’s this?” Paige smiled.

  
“Something from your past,” Croatoan said. “When you open it, you’ll remember it. But you have to be willing to remember it, Dove.”

  
Paige’s forehead wrinkled at the mention of the word.

  
“That…sounds familiar, somehow,” she murmured, and shook her head. “Why do you want me to open this box?”

  
“Because we need you to remember something in it,” Vince said compassionately. “But it is _your_ choice to open it. If you open it, you’ll remember some things that may not be pleasant. But as we said, it’s your choice.”

  
Paige sat silent a moment, thinking it over, and then opened the box.

  
Nathan shielded James protectively with his body as there was a brilliant glow from within the box, and Paige looked up at the two men seated across from her.

  
“Vince?” she gasped. “D-Dad?”

  
“ _Audrey_?” Nathan choked, hardly daring to believe it.

  
“No-I-I’m still Paige. But I remember _being_ Audrey,” she breathed. “What’s happened? Why are you back?”

  
“I will try to make the explanation as simple as I can. Time is growing short,” Croatoan replied gently. “I still can’t feel exactly where he is; but I can feel he’s in distress.”

  
“Who’s in distress?” Paige questioned.

  
Croatoan took her hand in his, rubbing it gently.

  
“Close your eyes—you should be able to feel him too,” he said softly, and Paige gasped “Duke! How?”

  
“We can get into that later,” Vince assured her. “But call out to him, please, my dear. He may answer you.”

  
“Call to him—from here,” Croatoan instructed, touching her forehead.

  
Paige closed her eyes. _Duke_ , she called. _Duke, please answer me!_

 

* * *

 

 

Duke stirred. His fever must be worse than he thought; he would swear he’d just heard Audrey calling to him, and he started to turn over when he heard it louder, this time, strong and clear.

  
_Duke!_

  
“A-Audrey?” Duke got out. “Audrey, is it _you?_ ”

  
_Yes, it’s me, Duke. Vince is here, looking for you. Where are you?_

  
“Safe house—one on Landry’s Cove,” Duke groaned. “Audrey, I’m sick.”

  
_I know, Duke. Hold on, we’re coming to help_ , she told him. “He says he’s in a safe house on Landry Cove,” she said to them, and Dwight grabbed his jacket to retrieve his phone to text Duke’s location to McHugh, to make sure nobody approached him until they could get there.

 

* * *

  
Duke heard the sound of tires crunching gravel outside, and could see a Haven PD squad car pulling into the driveway.

  
“Hold on-help’s here,” he said to the air. “There’s a squad car outside.”

  
“Duke says there’s a squad car outside of where he is,” Paige told the group.

  
Nathan and Dwight looked concerned.

  
“We haven’t told anyone yet we’re looking for Duke,” Nathan said.

  
Croatoan closed his eyes, and then opened them again.

  
“Tell him to get out of there—now,” he urged.

  
“Why?” Paige asked, wide-eyed.

  
In his mind’s eye, Croatoan could see the two officers approaching the house, their movements as though they were in a dream state.

  
“They’re under Regina’s control; tell him to get out of there, now!”

  
_Duke, run!_ Paige urged him. _Go to the Just in Case spot! Run!_

  
Nathan reached his police-band radio.

  
“Mitch, who’s out on a call at Landry’s Cove?” he questioned.

  
“No one I’m aware of, Chief,” was Mitch’s reply. “Nobody’s logged a call out there.”

 

* * *

 

 

Officer Brad Milachek kicked the door, splintering the wood and entering the safe house. They saw the abandoned blanket, empty on the sofa, but no sign of Duke.  
A faint scuffle was heard from outside, and Milachek caught sight of Duke, running away toward the woods.

  
“He’s running away,” he said.

  
_Shoot him_ , Regina called mentally. _He must not escape._

  
Milachek pulled out his pistol, and fired two shots from the porch. The first shot missed Duke, but the second shot hit him in the arm.

  
Duke cried out and clutched at his arm to try to prevent the aether from leaking out, but was too late as a torrent of it slipped past his fingers. He managed to reach the safety of the thick woods, darting through trees as he used his bandanna to try to stanch the flow of aether from his arm.

 

* * *

  
Milacheck walked out of the house, only to be interrupted by Nathan’s voice yelling over his walkie.

  
“Who’s firing? Stand down, stand down!” he hollered as he steered the Bronco out onto the highway.

  
“Ignore Chief Wuornos,” said an all-too-familiar voice over the walkie. “You have your orders—go get him!”

  
“William,” Nathan snarled into the handset.

  
“Nathan, how good to hear from you again,” William said.

  
“Whose radio do you have? What have you done to my men?”

  
“Your men are now our men, for the time being,” William told him. “Troubles, managed properly, can actually be quite beneficial.”

  
“Says you,” Nathan answered derisively, and William chuckled.

  
“I suppose you would feel that way about it. Oh well. I’m only here for Duke—turn him over, and we are so out of here, Scout’s Honor.”

  
“Leave Duke alone,” Nathan argued.

  
“No can do. He’s not with you, is he? I figured he’d be in touch with you and Audrey first thing. But I wouldn’t advise it,” William went on blithely. “He’s none too stable right now—he’s been given a rather large dose of some very nasty stuff, you see. Best you turn him over to us and let us deal with him.”

  
“No,” Nathan said. “Vince and Cro-Dr. Cross told us what you’re up to. Duke won’t help you do it, and we won’t either.”

  
“You will,” William answered severely. “Y’see, Officer Milachek was kind enough to wound Duke. It’s not life-threatening, he’s not really alive anyway, but the important thing is, it’s allowing all that stuff I told you about an outlet to escape through. Basically, he’s a Trouble bomb with a slow leak.”

 

* * *

 

 

Duke stumbled up the back steps of a house he was familiar with, and collapsed against the porch post, breathing hard.

  
He heard the back door open, and footsteps approaching.

  
“Something I can help you with, buddy?”

  
Duke turned slowly around, and faced the older woman.

  
“Hi Gloria,” he said weakly. “Guess who?”

  
Gloria opened her mouth to say something, swayed, and then slid down in a dead faint.

  
“That went well,” Duke muttered.


	22. Dead Man's Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Duke and Croatoan break on through to the other side

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 22** _   
_**"Dead Man's Party"** _

 

_**11 June** _

  
_Vince, Croatoan and I managed to convince Audr-, erm, Paige (She was still Audrey when I died; it's not like I've had time to get to know her as Paige)that she'd be safer out at the Chief's old cabin with James and Lizzie until we can rein in William and his family._

  
Vince, Howard, Croatoan, Nathan and Dwight all stood in a field, slightly apart from one another. It was obvious that neither Nathan nor Dwight were terribly happy about Vince allowing Croatoan to be loose, but they were doing their best to have trust in their old friends Vince and Duke to keep things from getting out of control.

  
Croatoan had been right about one thing; his energy boost hadn’t lasted for very long. Duke could see the traces of black creeping back into his veins, the ache returning to his body once more. But Duke focused, and drew a couple of shaky steadying breaths.

  
If this works, you’ll be loose, he told it mentally, and surprisingly, the negatively charged aether seemed to respond to him, settling down into his body once again.

  
“Are you _sure_ you can do this?” Nathan asked Duke. He was surprised to see Duke again, to say the very least--but yet not surprised, and he couldn't comprehend why.

  
“I don’t know-if Vince and Croa-Dr. Cross-are willing to assist, maybe,” Duke answered, glancing at the two older men.

  
Croatoan nodded. He seemed excited by the prospect; maybe a little _too_ excited, Nathan thought dourly, but was going to rely on his promise to not let Paige or James come to harm, and pray that included the rest of Haven as well.

 

"Just relax and focus, Duke," he heard Croatoan murmur next to him, a steadying hand on the back of his neck.

  
"Why are you touching him?" Nathan demanded.

  
"Because he's in pain--and unlike your old Trouble, Nathan, it is hard to focus when you're hurting," Croatoan said severely, and Nathan looked even more irritated, and was about to reply, but Duke interrupted.

  
"It’s okay. He's helping me, Nate, relax," he exhaled, feeling relief at Croatoan's second energy boost.

  
"You will need to release some of your own aether to open the doorway, just as you did before," Croatoan instructed, handing Duke a pocket knife.

  
"What about--that other stuff?" Duke asked.

  
"Croatoan and I will help to keep it in check," Vince assured him. "Although I must admit, I would feel better about this if we were doing it in the Armory."

  
"So would I," Dwight muttered.

  
"Do you want to run the risk of either Carter or William getting hold of your controller crystal?" Croatoan pointed out to him. "They do that--they'll get control over him due to the aether they've introduced into him."

  
"Wait—why couldn’t you use the Armory? It pulled all the bad aether out of everyone in Haven, so why couldn’t it do the same for Duke? Why not do it there?" Nathan questioned and Croatoan rolled his eyes.

  
"Because the Armory can't distinguish good aether from bad--it will simply pull _all_ of it--and we'll be no close to stopping the aether seeping from the Aether Realm to the Void."

  
"What would happen to Duke?" Dwight asked.

  
"Duke wouldn't exist anymore," Duke answered. "I'd just be confined along with all the rest of the aether."

  
"You'd be trapped forever," Nathan said softly, his eyes sad at the thought of Duke spending eternity as a prisoner of the Armory.

  
"Well, I'm not there yet," Duke half-smiled. "So let's get this show on the road."

  
He opened the knife, and cut into his palm, willing the aether to pool in the hollow of his hand instead of leaving him. He closed it, and drawing a deep breath, extended his hand outward--and seemingly into nothingness. He drew his hand back, flexing his fingers, relieved to see that they were all still attached.

  
"All right--you've proven to yourself that you can access the realm," Croatoan told him. "Now go fully--when you place your hand back in, simply use both hands--and push yourself into the Realm."

  
Duke glanced back at Nathan and Dwight, seeing their nervous expressions, but Nathan gave him a small smile and a slight nod. Duke returned it, and did as Croatoan instructed, and thrust both arms into the opening he'd created.

  
Haven seemed to dissolve in a rush of swirling light, the sound akin to being at the foot of Niagara Falls. It felt as though he were actually pushing his way through rushing water, and he struggled, unable to move forward, and started to retreat, but could feel Croatoan's hand at his back.

  
"Keep going!" he heard him shout as though he were a great distance away and not directly behind him. "You're nearly there!"

  
Ahead of him, he could feel something smooth, like a water balloon, and he felt his fingertips break through and then suddenly he and Croatoan tumbled out, falling onto the ground--had there been ground. Or rather, light to see the ground with, as everything appeared to be black. Nowhere was there light.

  
"Croatoan--Dr. Cross?" Duke gasped. "Are you here? You okay?"

  
"Yes," Duke heard his weak reply. “I-I’m here—somehow.”

  
Duke scrabbled around, feeling for him. "I can't see you--wish there was some kind of light here," he grumbled, and then suddenly the skies above them lit up with the most unearthly display that Duke had ever seen. He looked up, his mouth agape at the swirling patterns of what resembled cloud nebulas, their colors shifting from red to blue, oranges and yellows coloring them.

  
In the center of what he presumed to be sky, there was a large blackish ball, reddish glowing cracks covering its surface and he found himself reminded of the old Soundgarden song _Black Hole Sun_.

  
"It's more beautiful than I ever imagined it would be," Croatoan whispered, gazing all around them.

  
Duke stood up, gazing at the blackish-red orb above them.

  
“That’s it,” he gestured toward it. “That’s the heart of this place.”

  
“The aether font,” Croatoan murmured. “Look—it’s creating more,” he told Duke, pointing excitedly as the orb seemed to pulse, the red cracks shifting as a great spout of aether erupted from its surface like a solar flare, the globules flying out from its surface—and towards Duke and Croatoan, coming up just short of them before coalescing into a humanoid form. It was feminine, that much they could tell before it solidified, and both Croatoan and Duke were shocked to find themselves facing what looked to be Charlotte Cross, save for that her eyes were pure black.

  
“I chose a form familiar to the both of you,” the aether said in a strangely garbled voice. “We do not allow intruders here,” she said to Croatoan, and looked to Duke. “You will remain,” she told him imperiously. “In order to be reassimilated.”

  
“I don’t think so,” Duke replied.

  
“Aether is of one consciousness. It does not fight against its collective,” she ordered sternly.

  
“Well, mine does,” Duke answered sharply. “You gotta stop allowing aether to infiltrate the Void. It’s hurting people.”

  
“Hurting,” she puzzled. “What is—hurting? We do not understand.”

  
“Doesn’t aether ever come back here, tell you what’s going on outside this realm?” Duke asked, and Aether Charlotte looked even more confused.

  
“Perhaps I could explain it better,” Croatoan said, getting over his shock at seeing his deceased wife again. “Do you have contact with aether once it enters the Void?” he asked the being.

  
“No—there is only—silence,” Aether-Charlotte spoke. “A—sadness.”

  
“You feel sadness from it?” Duke questioned.

  
“No—we feel sadness because it is lost when it enters the Void.”

  
“Then why do you not keep it here? Because I have to tell you, when it enters other realms, it is terribly destructive.”

  
Aether-Charlotte moved closer to him.

  
“You are—different—than the others,” she observed.

  
“Yes. I used to be a human from another realm,” Duke said.

  
“But you are not a human now.”

  
“No, I’m not.”

  
“Why?”

  
“It is a very long and complicated story, which we really don’t have time to tell you right now,” Duke said.

  
“We wish to know,” she protested, and extended her hand to him. “You do not have to speak—join with us and we will learn the truth from you.”

  
“I don’t know about this, Duke,” Croatoan said, a nervous edge in his voice.

  
Duke glanced at him.

  
“Afraid they’ll find out about your little experimentations on aether?” he remarked, and then turned his gaze back to Aether-Charlotte. “In their realm, they used aether for medical reasons, hoping to cure their sick, but in my realm, it made us sick,” Duke said, hoping that put it enough in a nutshell for her satisfaction. “And it caused afflictions that should have been impossible for my kind to do. A lot of people have died because of it,” he finished pointedly at Croatoan.

  
“Why?”

  
“We don’t know,” Croatoan spoke. “We thought it perhaps my species is more evolved than his former, but the aether has—mutated.”

  
“Aether is ever-changing,” she replied. “We adapt ourselves to fit our environs. It has always been that way for us—that is why we discourage visitors from other realms.”

  
“There have been others here?” Croatoan asked, curious. “Like who, for example?”

“Other beings from other realms,” she said. “And it has always been the same outcome.”

  
“Aether doesn’t play well with others,” Duke noted. “I think they—it—just wants to be left alone. Then why not fortify your realm’s borders to prevent it from going into the Void?” he questioned her.

  
“We must defend ourselves from attack,” she answered.

  
“Attack? I-I don’t understand,” Duke told her. “We—my people are not nearly advanced enough to attack your realm,” he protested.

  
“It matters not who is attacking,” she blurted, her tone becoming heated. “We defend ourselves! Join with us and you will understand,” she said in a gentler tone to Duke, and held her hand out to him. “We wish to understand your reasons—you must try to comprehend ours as well.”

  
Duke nodded agreement. “Wait—what about Croatoan?” he asked.

  
“He may return to his own realm,” she spoke, and gestured, and Croatoan vanished with an angry yelp.

 

* * *

 

 

Croatoan suddenly reappeared from nowhere almost as quickly as he and Duke had disappeared, tumbling head over heels before he sprawled flat on the ground.

  
He looked up blearily to see Vince, Dwight and Nathan all standing around with their hands on their heads, with Carter and William holding guns on them, Regina and Meredith also nearby.

  
“Where’s Duke?” Nathan asked.

  
“Still there,” Croatoan answered.

  
“Well, good,” Carter beamed. “Then it’s time for Phase Two of our little plan.”


	23. Firestorm

_**The Crocker Chronicles** _   
_**Chapter 23** _   
_**"Firestorm"** _

 

 

_**11 June** _

  
_So I finally made it into the Aether Realm. The Aether Collective, for lack of a better term, shunted Croatoan out of here like I used to toss out drunks at closing time back at the Gull. Can I do that too? William and Carter Durst want to control me--but can I turn the tables on them before it's too late?_

 

* * *

 

 

Aether-Charlotte gazed at the spot where Croatoan had vanished back through, and then turned back to Duke. She turned back to the aether black, shimmering, seeming to shrink slightly, and then re-formed herself as Jennifer.

  
"This form seems to mean more to you," she told him.

  
Duke nodded.

  
"I cared for her very much in my world. But she's gone."

  
"Gone," Aether-Jennifer said. "But you could bring her to you here, if you wished."

  
"No, she died. When my-when humans die, they're lost forever."

  
"You were not lost forever."

  
"I was a little different than regular humans to begin with," Duke said somewhat defensively.

  
"Because of what the man who was with you did to your kind."

  
"Him among others," Duke replied.

  
In reply, she stretched her hand out to Duke, and this time, he took it in his own, and she placed her other hand against his head.

  
"Return to your natural state," she told him gently. "It will be easier for both of us."

  
"I would tell you everything, if I had time," Duke protested. "But there are a group of people out there who are trying to breach your perimeters here," he gestured. "They did something to me in a lab in their realm, the aether they altered is--sick, somehow," he went on. "I know this because it's making me sick also," he went on, seeing the black reappearing in his veins once more.

  
"How is it sick? Tell us," she urged. "Let us try to help you. But we can only do that through the joining."

 

* * *

 

"What is going on here?" Croatoan demanded as he got to his feet.

  
"Now, Doug, take it easy," Carter replied nonchalantly. "We have no quarrel with you. Actually, you helped to pave the way for us. So if you want in on the ground floor, now is the time."

  
"You gotta get back in there--Duke's a walking aether-bomb!" Dwight blurted out before William clubbed up across the back of the head with his rifle, dropping him stunned to the ground.

  
Nathan moved forward, but William put the barrel of the rifle under his chin, and he froze before kneeling down beside Dwight.

  
“Stay down there, both of you,” William ordered. “And don’t you get any big ideas either there, Grandpa,” he snarled at Vince.

  
"What about Duke?" Croatoan gasped.

  
"Well, since our impetuous friend has let the proverbial cat out of the bag, yes, it's true," Carter spoke. "The aether that was introduced into Duke has one specific purpose--to make all the surrounding aether just like it. So whenever he joins up with them, as he is sure to do, because that's how aether learns," he went on. "They're going to learn that they're not quite as invincible as they've always believed themselves to be."

  
"Who are they?" Nathan demanded. "Aether has leaders?"

  
"Aether is a collective consciousness, like bees in a hive," Carter explained. "I do forget sometimes they're so primitive here," he remarked, making Meredith and Regina grin, and Nathan deepened to a crimson color. "Think of the aether we placed in Duke like a swarm of wasps being introduced into a colony of bees."

  
"You destroy the consciousness, and you'll destroy the Aether Realm," Croatoan said hotly. "It'll supernova! Who knows what could happen to our own realms if that happens! Even _I_ would never do such a thing!"

  
"There will be no supernova. There will be control over the Aether Realm--our control," Carter assured him. "We'd been working towards that end for some time now--gaining control over consciousness."

  
"The Bio-Mech incident," Croatoan commented, and Carter shrugged.

  
"There must always be a trial and error period of any research," he said. "And how did you find out about it?"

  
"You hear things sometimes, out there in the Void," Croatoan replied. "I thought it merely the ranting of conspiracy theorists. It would seem that it was true after all. Do you really think your insane plans will work? That Duke will do what you want him to do?"

 

"He did what _you_ wanted him to do," Carter pointed out politely.

  
"Duke wasn't an aether being then either. He's not a regular aether-man, Carter," Croatoan reasoned. "There--there is a soul beneath it--a living soul."

  
"Duke's a good man," Nathan stated firmly. "He won't do what you want--even if it means his life. He's proven that once already."

  
"Well, we'll find out soon enough," Carter said, smiling. "I would imagine once Duke re-emerges from the Aether Realm, he's going to be a changed man in more ways than one."

  
Dwight observed Regina out of the corner of his eye. She didn’t look happy when Carter had said that he was responsible for the Bio-Mech incident, whatever that meant, and just maybe, he pondered, they might just have an ace in the hole after all.

 

* * *

 

“Come—join with us,” Aether-Jennifer murmured. “And we will heal your illness. I feel your pain,” she told him softly, her hand on his hair. “I know that you suffer with this. Let us help you.”

  
"No, I don't think that I should," Duke said, thinking over some of the information that he'd gathered while in the learning tube, and he recalled under their Urban Conspiracies there had been one theory among researchers that if a certain type of charged aether was introduced into the Aether Realm, it could incapacitate its collective consciousness, just as had been done with the recipients of Bio-Mech software.

  
_And they could control it then. The whole Bio-Mech incident was just a testing ground to see if their theory would work!_ Duke thought wildly, seeing Aether-Jennifer's face mirroring his concern.

  
I think they were counting on me to join up with you," he trailed off, thinking on it. "They wanted me to infect the Collective with the bad aether!"

  
"Do you think they could do such a thing?" she questioned.

  
“I think they will if I join up with you,” Duke told her. “So I need to get out of here with this stuff. Is there anywhere else I can go other than here? Somewhere where this negative aether couldn’t escape, and more importantly, no one could access it again.”

  
“There is such a place,” Aether-Jennifer replied reluctantly. “But there is no guarantee that you would be able to return.”

  
“If that’s the price I pay, so be it. I won’t release this on my home world, or any other world,” Duke stated firmly, and she placed her hand on his cheek.

  
“If you do return safely, we would like to know what it is about this world that causes such emotion,” she smiled at him. “Perhaps someday—“she continued, but Duke shook his head.

  
“Due to aether’s abilities to infect other species, I think it’d be better if you kept things as they are and keep yourselves to yourselves,” Duke said. “But we need to plug all the leaks into the Void. Once that’s done, they can’t use aether to hurt others anymore. I don’t know if we could pull all the aether that’s already gone back, but what would happen to it?”

  
“When the—leaks, as you called them—are closed, the aether outside will simply cease to exist. It will disintegrate, having no further connection to us.”

  
“Which means the same could happen to me too,” Duke murmured, and Aether-Jennifer nodded.

  
“It is very possible,” she said. “Do you still wish to continue with your plan?”

  
Duke lifted his chin resolutely. He’d come too far to chicken out now, and he nodded, determination in his eyes.

  
“Yes,” he answered.

  
“Very well,” she said evenly. “Then I will show you.”

 

* * *

 

 

“What do you think’s keeping him?” William asked.

  
Much as he hated to admit it, Nathan agreed with him. Every second felt like an hour, sitting here on pins and needles, waiting for the other shoe to drop. What was going to happen when Duke came through that portal again?

  
Dwight was stealthily observing Regina.

  
“What do you want, Chimp?” she asked in a bored tone, seeing him watching her.

  
“What’s this Bio-Mech thing they keep talking about?” he asked.

  
“Nothing that you could comprehend,” she snapped, but he could see the hurt beneath her sharp words.

  
“You know, I knew Dr. Cross—Charlotte Cross,” Dwight began, and frowned at the memories crowding his mind.

  
Regina however, looked interested, tapping into them.

  
“Ah, she was your ‘special someone’, as you say here,” she half-smiled. “Well, I suppose she thought that Doug Cross was dead, we all did,” she continued, more to herself than Dwight. She smiled tightly at Dwight’s surprised expression.

  
“I can read minds,” she confided.

  
“That’s your Trouble then,” Dwight remarked.

  
“Mine is a _gift_ , not a Trouble,” she said sharply.

  
“Uh-huh,” Dwight grumbled. “That why you cut yourself off from other people—because you can’t silence their voices in your mind?” He shook his head. “Duke told me about that time those two guys tried to swipe his boat, that one of them could read minds, but he was half-nuts because he couldn’t make it shut off,” he went on. “I guess that would drive me crazy too after a while. And your own _father_ did that to you?”

  
Croatoan by now was listening to their conversation keenly. He saw what Dwight was up to, and kept a furtive eye on William, Carter and Meredith to make sure they weren’t aware of it.

  
“Daddy—isn’t my actual father. He adopted me when I was very young,” Regina replied.

  
“Wanted to keep the most valuable lab rat close, I suppose,” Croatoan remarked, and she whirled on him.

  
“That isn’t true!” she retorted. Carter glanced their way, but turned back towards where Duke and Croatoan had vanished, waiting for Duke to reappear.

  
Croatoan gave her a condescending look.

  
“Hm. Would you care to try telling that to someone who _wasn’t_ there in the lab every day?” he asked, his tone just casual enough to have planted the seeds of discord deeply enough to have taken root.

 

* * *

 

 

Somewhere in a bed in Newhaven Hospital in Otherworld, Mil stirred in bed, finally coming to.

  
It had taken a good deal of time for the doctors to heal the wound that Drake had inflicted, but she would fully recover in time, they had been pleased to report, much to her partner’s relief.

  
She felt a hand close around her own, and she opened her eyes, half-expecting to see Duke, but instead found Winters seated beside her, his blue eyes fixed on her.

  
“Hey,” he smiled. “How are you feeling?”

  
“A little sore,” she replied. “What’s happened?”

  
“A lot,” he answered, and smiled. “We’ve put Spiral out of business for good. After the lab incident, all hell broke loose inside. People’s Troubles began manifesting, and in the confusion, I managed to get word to Reynolds. I think about ninety percent of Enforcement arrived at the factory in about twenty minutes,” he told her.

  
“So they caught Meredith and William?” she asked. “Duke and I found out that—“

  
“That Carter Durst is behind the whole thing? Yes, we know that. We’re looking for them, but we suspect that they all jumped to Otherworld.”

  
Mil looked around.

  
“Where’s Duke? What happened to him?”

  
Winters’ smile faded.

  
“They did something to him in the lab,” he told her. “They injected him with negatively-charged aether, and were about to shunt him into the Aether Realm. They planned to take control of its consciousness somehow—but Doctors Howard and Cross and another man used a thinny to get into the lab. They couldn’t prevent Duke from being teleported, but Dr. Cross managed to change the programming on the teleportation device at the last minute."

 

"Where did he send him?" Mil asked.

"He sent Duke back into his old world, not the Aether Realm,” he went on. “The Dursts and Meredith escaped. Drake’s dead. Dr. Mendelssohn disappeared along with Dr. Howard and this other man, Teagues; I think that was his name,” he finished, rubbing his hair. “There’s been a whole lot that’s gone on these last two days.”

  
“Two days? I was out for two days?” Mil blurted. “What else has happened?”

  
“My—Trouble—surfaced,” Winters admitted.

  
“What is it?” Mil asked. “Is it something awful?”

  
“I guess it would depend on which way you looked at it. As an Enforcement officer, it would be incredibly helpful,” Winters sighed. “But as a regular person, it can be difficult.”

  
“Well, what is it?” Mil demanded.

  
For answer, Winters reached over and picked up a pen from her bedside table.

  
“Dr. Kevin Richards left this pen,” he began. “He likes his work well enough, but he thinks that he spends too much time here at the hospital with his patients and not enough with his wife and son. His wife feels the same way, that’s why they’ve been discussing getting a divorce,” he went on, and laid the pen down. “That’s my Trouble—anything I touch—anything—I can instantly know something about whoever owns it or recently handled it.”

  
“That would be incredibly useful to an Enforcement officer,” Mil noted, smiling. “No criminal would be safe from you.”

  
“Unfortunately, it also means I have to go around with these on all the time,” Winters gestured at the gloves in his lap. “Because I really don’t need to know every single little detail about the people who prepare my food, or touched a doorknob before me, all that comes through when I touch something. I suppose that would be the Trouble part,” he grumbled.

  
Mil reached out and gently touched his bare hand.

  
“What can you tell me about this?” she asked.

  
“It belongs to a woman who cares a great deal about someone—a man,” Winters began softly. “But it’s not who he thinks it’s about,” he went on, his face somewhat surprised. “She has affection for that other man that he thought it was, but it’s just—affection, nothing more. She feels something more for another man—the one she sees every day, that she works with—but she’s never been able to tell him before, because she didn’t know how he felt,” he finished softly.

  
“You think maybe this other man knows that now?” Mil questioned softly, her eyes on his.

  
“Maybe,” Winters smiled. “Maybe he always felt the same way—he just didn’t know how to tell her before.”

  
A tap at the door, and Chief Reynolds came into the room.

  
“Good, you’re awake,” he half-smiled. “Now if you two are done confessing your feelings for one another, I need to borrow Winters for a while. We have some criminals to go arrest in Otherworld.”

  
Mil threw her bedclothes back, sitting up.

  
“Permission to accompany you, sir,” she winced.

  
“Denied,” Reynolds said firmly, and then relented. “I know you want to see this thing through, Millie, but it would be best if you stay and recover,” he told her in a kindly tone. “I don’t think your—partner—would like it if you made yourself worse.”

  
“No, I wouldn’t,” Winters protested. “We’ll get him back somehow, Mil. I promise.”

  
“Just make sure you come back,” Mil smiled. “We have a lot to talk about when you get back.”

  
“I think so too,” Winters answered shyly, and Reynolds shook his head.

  
“C’mon, we’re burning daylight,” he said, and Winters gave Mil’s forehead a gentle kiss before squeezing her hand and exiting with Reynolds.

 

* * *

 

 

“Regina, my love,” Carter called to his daughter. “What are you and the Neanderthal discussing so intensely over there?”

  
“It’s not just the Neanderthal,” Regina replied. “I’ve been having a lovely chat with Dr. Cross as well.”

  
Carter’s smile soured slightly.

  
“In regards to what, dearest?”

  
“The Bio-Mech incident,” she replied. “You were responsible for that? You knew that if Cannon shut down the Bio-Mech program all those people were going to die. You did it that way so it couldn’t be traced back to your company, didn’t you?”

  
“We had to know if we could take control of the Aether Realm, and we can,” Carter explained patiently. “Burning out the core chip was the only way I could be sure it could not be traced back to us. Unfortunately, as all of the core chips were implanted in the cortex of the brain of Bio-Mech recipients, the same result happened.”

  
“So all those people who died, they were just—expendable to you,” Regina said cautiously.

  
“There are always losses with great changes, Regina, you know that as well as anyone,” Carter answered, a slight edge to his voice.

  
“T-They were _losses_? That’s all your brother was to you? Like he was a bad business venture that you could just write off as a loss?” Regina answered shrilly.

  
“Of course I was hurt when that happened to Daniel,” Carter retorted. “He was my kid brother. I was devastated when the doctors pronounced him brain-dead.”

  
“You weren’t there when it happened,” Regina said. “I was! I was _there_ ,” she half-sobbed. “He was just standing there smiling and playing with me one moment, and the next—it was like someone had just thrown an off switch and the light just went out of his eyes and he just sank to the ground. He’s just a shell now,” she ground out savagely, a tear trickling down her face. “There’s just a blank, empty shell of something that used to be Daniel Durst.”

  
“Regina, this isn’t the time or place to discuss family matters,” Carter said tersely, rapidly losing patience.

  
“I’m not your _family_ ,” Regina snarled, tapping into his mind. “I’m just your pet science project you kept around so you could use my abilities to read other people’s minds!” she raged at him, seeing clearly for the first time in her life that Dr. Cross had been right; she’d merely been another tool in her so-called father’s arsenal.

  
“You think too much,” Meredith told her, walking toward her, her hand outstretched, her fingers black and Regina opened fire, the shot hitting Meredith between the eyes.

  
“No!” William shrieked as Meredith slowly slid to the ground.

  
Carter looked angry as he watched her fall to the ground, and then back to Regina.

  
“You shouldn’t have done that, dear,” he said, and fired his own pistol, hitting Regina as Nathan retrieved Meredith’s gun, and fired a shot, wounding William in the shoulder.

  
“What have you done?” William cried at his father.

  
“What had to be done,” Carter answered thickly. “Nothing is going to interfere with this. Nothing or no one,” he went on, gesturing at William and Nathan to drop their pistols, and they did so.

  
Croatoan cradled Regina in his arms.

  
“How bad is it?” Dwight asked.

  
“Bad enough,” Croatoan muttered. “If we were in my world, we could fix it. But as it is—“he broke off, as the area where he and Duke had vanished had begun to shimmer, and Carter smiled.

  
“He’s coming back,” he said.


	24. Goodbye To Romance

_**Chapter 24** _  
_**"Goodbye To Romance"** _

 

_**11 June** _

  
_This may well be my last entry. If it is, it's been a good run, I can't really complain. Whatever lies in store for me--Heaven, Hell, another turn in the karmic wheel of life--I have a feeling that I will find out the answer when I open the next door, like Kipling's The Lady and the Tiger. (Kind of hoping that it won't be a tiger)._

 

* * *

 

Duke stood with Aether-Jennifer, both of them staring off into what looked to be a black hole.

  
From what he remembered in school, black holes had a gravity so dense that nothing could escape them, not even light, which made them appear as their name suggested—a black hole, a tear in the fabric of the universe. Science suggested that all matter disintegrated within them—if that was the case, Duke reflected glumly, then the same would happen to both he and the aether.

  
_Can a soul be disintegrated?_ he wondered. _Guess I'll find out soon enough._

* * *

 

"He's coming back," Carter said. He moved closer to the shimmering area, smiling.

  
"Duke, welcome ba-" he began, but stopped abruptly as a very large weapon muzzle emerged from the hole, followed by a rather angry-looking man, followed by about four others.

  
Carter hastily dropped his weapon at Dwight's feet, and put his hands on his head.

  
Dwight started to make a grab for the gun, but Croatoan stopped him.

  
"Don't," he urged in a low voice. "Enforcement has been known to shoot first and question later."

  
"What's enforcement?" Nathan asked, staring at the man who was holding the weapon. To say they looked alike was almost an understatement, and even Vince and Dwight goggled at him for a moment.

  
"Cops from our world," William said weakly. He knelt down alongside Croatoan, who was still cradling Regina. She was holding on, but only just.

  
"Gina, I am _so_ sorry," he told her softly, with tears in his eyes. "I didn't know—about the Bio-Mech, I _swear_ to you I didn't. Had I known—"William broke off, glancing at Nathan and Dwight. "Things might've been different."

  
"Citizens," the cop that looked like Nathan spoke. "Miss Meadows," he went on, going over to Croatoan and Regina. "How bad is it?"

  
"She needs immediate transport to a hospital," Croatoan said, and two officers gathered round her, unpacking their field kits to try and save her. They administered aid briefly, and then gathered her up before vanishing back into the thinny they opened.

  
"Thank _God_ you've come," Carter began briskly. "Dr. Cross and these people took us hostage—"

  
"Save it," said the older man in charge with them. "We know everything, Mr. Durst. All of it—you, Miss Meadows, your son, and Dr. Mendelssohn have a lot to answer for."

  
"What about Dr. Cross there?" Carter snarled as his hands were forced behind him. "He's as responsible as any of us!"

  
"Dr. Cross' experimentations did not cause permanent harm or death to beings in our realm. Any harm done in this one is out of our jurisdiction, as you well know. He was banished from our realm, and has kept to it, to the best of our knowledge," the older man said. He glanced down at Meredith's body.

  
"And so ends the Cannon family," he murmured sadly. "Thomas refused to be taken alive. Who killed her?"

  
"Regina shot Meredith, and then he shot her," Nathan gestured at Carter.

  
The man, whose name badge read Reynolds, A., Chief, Enforcement Dept. 24335, glanced at him. He too seemed taken aback for a moment by Nathan's resemblance to his officer.

  
"Nathan, he must be your twinner," he remarked.

  
"His name's Nathan _too_?" Dwight blurted.

  
"What's a twinner?" Nathan asked.

  
"I should think the term was self-explanatory, Nathan," Vince remarked. "It's always been said that everyone has a twin somewhere."

  
"Nathaniel Winters, Enforcement," Winters nodded to Nathan.

  
"Nathan Wuornos," Nathan answered. "I'm Chief of Police here in Haven," he addressed Reynolds. "Have any of you seen our friend? His name is Duke—"

  
"Crocker," Reynolds finished for him. "Yes, we're acquainted with Mr. Crocker," he continued. "However, I have not seen him since his departure from Newhaven, the city we came from. I understand Mr. Durst had designs on him as well."

  
"You don't have anything on me!" Carter shouted as the other officer led him back to where the other two had departed with Regina. "You can't force Regina to testify against me!"

  
"I don't think you'll have to force her to," Croatoan retorted. "I think she'll be more than willing to take the stand against you—provided she survives. And you may want to take steps to ensure that she does," he added pointedly at Reynolds, who nodded.

  
"We'll see she gets the best of care," he replied. "And has adequate protection against further attempts on her life."

  
Two more officers appeared, followed by a grayish-haired man in a white lab coat, and Nathan and Dwight stared at him also.

  
" _Benjy_?" Nathan said incredulously.

  
"My name is _not_ Benjy," the man snapped.

  
"Dr. Fields is a coroner," Reynolds explained.

  
"Does this mean that for every person here, there's somebody that looks like them over there?" Dwight asked Nathan, and Nathan shrugged.

  
"I dunno," Nathan answered, eyeing his doppelganger. "It's kind of creeping me out."

  
"Talking monkeys," William grumbled as the officer finished placing his arm in a sling.

  
"Save it for your lawyer or whatever it is you have over there," Nathan snapped back, and the officer jerked William back through the thinny before he could reply.

  
"What of Dr. Mendelssohn?" Reynolds addressed Nathan as Howard appeared from nowhere.

  
"We have Dr. Mendelssohn in safekeeping," Howard said. "I would be glad to take you to him."

 

"Lead the way," Reynolds replied. The fact that Howard had materialized from nowhere had not seemed to faze him in the slightest, and Nathan presumed that it must be an everyday occurrence in their world.

  
"Well, that seems to have one situation under control," Winters exhaled. "Now we have your friend to contend with. We know that his last location was this realm. Where is he?"

  
"The Aether Realm," Nathan said softly. "I hope he makes it."

  
"As do I," Winters answered.  


* * *

 

Duke stood alongside Aether-Jennifer, quiet for a moment.

  
"If you can, return here with us," she told him. "We should like to know your story."

  
"I don't know if I'll be making a return trip," Duke replied. "But if I can, I will. I promise," he finished, smiling faintly. He squeezed her hand, and then moved closer to the hole.

He could feel the negatively charged aether roiling beneath, wanting him to release it.

  
"I have to go," he told her, and gripped her hand briefly before launching himself towards the hole.

  
The negative aether surged forward, blasting itself free of Duke's body, but he was already caught in the gravitational pull of the hole, pulling both he and it inexorably toward it, disappearing into its depths.

  
Duke remembered being aware of a crushing sensation, a feeling as though he couldn't breathe, remembering being back in Haven PD, Nathan smothering the life out of him, the sound of Audrey's voice in his ears as everything went darker and darker before there was only silence.

 

* * *

 

Croatoan straightened up, his face somber, and Vince also looked sad for a moment.

  
"What's the matter?" Nathan asked.

  
"I can't feel Duke anymore," Vince answered. "There was a sort of--sensation, I suppose--that was there for a moment-and then nothing."

  
There was a shimmering in the air before them again, and a form emerged from it. Dwight, Nathan and Vince all gasped.

  
"Jennifer?" Nathan whispered.

  
"No, this isn't Miss Mason," Croatoan replied. "This is the aether consciousness. She--or rather it--must have taken on Jennifer's form instead of Charlotte's."

  
"You are correct, Dr. Cross," Aether-Jennifer said in that watery voice.

  
"Where's Duke? What's happened to him?" Nathan asked anxiously.

  
"Did he join with the Aether Realm?" Croatoan asked.

  
"He chose not to," Aether-Jennifer replied. "He told us he could not remain with us."

  
"Then where did he go?" Nathan asked his tone desperate.

  
"He chose Interstice," she answered.

  
Croatoan paled a little, and Nathan spotted it.

  
"What? What does that mean? What is Interstice?" Nathan demanded. "Vince, can't you--"

  
Vince shook his head. Nathan looked grieved, and then turned towards Croatoan, who gazed back at him sadly.

  
"Please," Nathan said brokenly. "If--"

  
"I can't, Nathan," Croatoan answered compassionately. "No one can."

  
"What is this Interstice thing, anyway?" Dwight demanded.

  
"Interstice is a space between realms," Croatoan answered. "In this world, you would term it a black hole--once there--"

  
"There is no point of return," Vince finished quietly.

  
"He told us that we hurt your kind," Aether-Jennifer went on, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Nathan looked as though he were about to cry.

  
"You could say that," Dwight answered, his voice even. "So what do you propose to do about it?"

  
She studied him a moment, her black eyes focusing on him briefly before she spoke again.

  
"There will be no further issues," she told him. "We are sealing off our realm. There will be no further interactions between the realms."

  
Vince nodded sagely. "I think that would be wise," he replied.

  
"No," Croatoan protested. "We could learn so _much_ from you," he wheedled, but Vince put his hand up.

  
"I think you've learned all you need to know about aether," he answered, a razor-sharp edge to his voice. "She--they're making their point pretty clear--they don't want to be bothered," he went on. "So all this time--you didn't realize you were hurting us," he continued. "Or were being used to hurt us," he added pointedly, glaring at Croatoan, who didn't flinch. "So what does that mean when you seal off the realm? Does that mean you're sealing off the Void too?"

  
"No. Interaction between other worlds will still be possible. It is simply that they will not be able to access our realm," Aether-Jennifer replied, stepping back.

  
She raised her hand, and after a few moments, they could see the small spheres of aether in the sky, flying swiftly towards her, where they landed on her outstretched palm, melting into her, before she lowered her hand once more.

  
"The same has been done for your world," she told Winters and Reynolds, who sagged with relief.

  
"Thank you," Reynolds replied.

  
"Perhaps there will come a day when we might get our act together and be able to interact with your world," Vince half-smiled.

  
Aether-Jennifer shook her head.

  
"Isolation is best," she replied. She gazed around her.

  
"So different than our realm," she murmured, more to herself than to them. She glanced back at Nathan, and gave him a small smile before she vanished back through the thinny once again.

  
Nathan blinked back tears. Once again, Duke was gone forever--sacrificing himself so that everybody else could carry on. There was so much he'd wanted to say to him; and now that chance was gone for good.

  
Vince and Croatoan glanced at one another, and Vince stepped forward, gesturing to Dwight and Nathan, who moved closer, puzzled.

  
Vince touched each of them on the forehead, and they both gasped.

  
"We saw Duke before," Nathan blurted, as his memories of seeing Duke on the island returned. Vince nodded, and patted Nathan's shoulder.

  
"Meant a great deal to Duke that you were able to talk," he told him.

  
"He told me that he forgave me for—what I did," Nathan said softly, and looked up at Vince. "Thank you for returning that memory."

 

* * *

 

Duke stirred. He could tell there was light wherever he was, and he cautiously opened his eyes.

  
He glanced down at himself. He looked normal—no black veins in his arms, no grayish pallor, and he sat up slowly.

  
"You are awake," said a soft voice.

  
"I guess so," Duke replied. "Where am I?"

  
"We call our realm Solstice," the voice replied.

  
Movement caught Duke's eye, and he could see what looked to be a tall, thin woman wrapped in a white velvet cloak approach. She was so pale she was nearly translucent, her silvery eyes resting on him.

  
"Are you an angel?" Duke asked. He didn't see any wings; but he figured it couldn't hurt to ask.

  
"No, we are not angelic, or what beings of your realm would term angels," the woman explained. "I am Xeria, and you are Duke," she smiled.

  
"How did you know that?" Duke asked.

  
"We learned much about you while you slept," Xeria told him.

  
"How did I get here?" Duke questioned. "I'm sorry to keep asking questions, but I'm really confused on how I got here."

  
"We sensed your presence in the Interstice, and we rescued you," Xeria informed him. "You were very nearly crushed to death."

  
"I was kind of trying to be," Duke confessed. "I have—had some very bad stuff in me—"

  
"The aether, yes," Xeria said. "It has been removed from you, and returned to its source."

  
"No, it was very unstable—the bad stuff that—"

  
Xeria held up her hand. "The negatively charged aether was left in Interstice. We only removed you—the spark that remained."

  
"Removed my--spark?" Duke parroted. "I—don't understand. You see, aether is my whole makeup. I look like a—person from my realm, but I'm not, not anymore."

  
"You are," Xeria assured him. "All that you were before—we restored to you."

  
"You mean—I'm really alive again?" Duke marveled, prodding himself. He felt real enough, he noted, and he closed his eyes, attempting to return to his aether state—and nothing happened, and he looked up at Xeria, understanding.

  
"You saved me," he smiled gently, and then sobered. "Why?"

  
"We felt the disturbance in Interstice, and we sensed your presence there," Xeria began. "We can restore you to your realm, if you wish."

  
"But I _died_ there," Duke protested, although the promise of home, of Haven, sounded too good to be true, and he looked suspiciously at her.

  
"You aren't trying to restart the Troubles, are you?" he asked.

  
"No. The aether has chosen to isolate itself from all realms; and we must respect its decision," Xeria said. "However, we can restore you to your realm, Duke."

  
"But they all know I'm dead," Duke protested weakly.

  
"Do you not wish to go home?" Xeria questioned.

  
"More than anything," Duke whispered. To see a Trouble-free Haven; to be normal, all of his friends normalized again, it seemed too much to hope for.

  
"Do you wish to be restored to your realm? It will not be as easy as you believe," Xeria warned in her gentle tone. "But it can be done, if you desire it. As you told your friend, you must have faith."

  
"I remember," Duke said softly. "If only all of us could be returned home again. Doesn't seem fair that I get fixed and everybody else who died because of the Troubles doesn't."

  
Xeria chuckled softly. "Are all beings from your world so complex?" she smiled, and touched his face gently.

  
"I'm kind of unique, I guess," Duke replied. "But…yes, if you can—I want to go home."

  
"I think that we could arrange something," Xeria told him, and then vanished in a bright light.  


* * *

 

Nathan swung into the hospital corridor, walking down to Room 312, as he had been doing since the Troubles ended months ago, spending his lunch hour visiting with Duke.

  
He'd been doing this since they'd managed to restart his heart after he'd suffocated him to death. All the rest had given up hope; but Nathan had kept at his resuscitation efforts until Gloria had managed to detect a weak pulse. Duke was alive—but unconscious.

  
Gloria had kept him concealed in the morgue, smuggling in oxygen, along with monitoring and IV equipment, helping to keep Duke alive—and hidden from Croatoan, until Audrey and Vince had convinced him to leave with them in the Armory, ending the Troubles for good.

  
Nathan had hoped when he'd returned to the station, that Duke would have regained consciousness; but he hadn't. Even four months later, Nathan came to the hospital, talking to him, hoping to see some sign that Duke knew he was there.

  
He entered the hospital room, watching as Julia Carr finished her examination.

  
He'd written to her after the Troubles had ended forever, telling her that both Vince and Dave, her father and uncle respectively, had passed away; and surprisingly, she'd returned to Haven, taking up practice there.

  
"How's he doing today?" Nathan asked.

  
Julia sighed. "Same as always," she answered, and then frowned, thinking for a moment. "Nathan, I was talking to a friend of mine from med school," she began. "She works at a long-term care facility upstate. It's only a couple of hours' drive from here in—"

  
"No," Nathan answered stubbornly, having had this conversation more than once. "I'm not sending him off to one of those places. Duke _is_ going to wake up."

  
"Nathan, you have to face reality," Julia argued, glancing back down at Duke's supine form. "Duke may not wake up for months or even years—and there is the possibility that he may never regain consciousness again," she finished in a softer tone. "Just—promise me you'll think about it, okay?"

  
Nathan nodded curtly, and Julia looked almost tearful.

  
"I hate seeing him this way too, Nathan," she told him gently, and glanced back at Duke once more. "Even if he was a petty crook," she half-smiled, and departed the room.

  
Nathan pulled his chair up alongside Duke's bed.

  
"So where were we?" he began, pulling out the book he'd been reading. "Chapter Three," he read aloud. "We were just pulling into the station—"he began, and then looked back to Duke. He lowered the book, and took his hand in his.

  
"Was I wrong, Duke?" he whispered to him. "Was I wrong to want to keep you here?" He gazed at him. "You would hate being like this—hate me for keeping you like this," he continued, sniffling, wiping his nose with his hand. "This isn't living,' you'd say." He swallowed hard. "Maybe they were right, and I was wrong—maybe we—maybe I—should have let you go," he finished, and let go Duke's hand, picking up his book once more.

  
A sound from the bed made him glance up, and he saw Duke stir slightly.

  
That in and of itself wasn't unusual—Duke had moved on occasion, even opened his eyes once or twice. But Gloria had told him that it wasn't unusual for coma patients to do such a thing.

  
"He isn't regaining consciousness, Nathan," she'd told him when Duke had opened his eyes the first time. "It's a reflexive action. He isn't focusing; he doesn't realize we're here."  
Duke moved again, and this time, he opened his eyes.

  
Nathan laid his book down again, and leaned over Duke, and gasped when Duke's eyes moved to gaze at him.

  
"Are you seeing me, Duke?" Nathan asked softly, watching Duke blink a few times at him. "Do you know who I am?"

  
"Na-than," Duke exhaled, barely audible.

  
"Yes, it's Nathan," Nathan got out, smiling, tears streaking his face. "It's Nathan."

  
Duke stirred further, causing his monitor to beep, and Nathan could hear Gloria out in the hallway, coming towards the room.

  
"Happened?" Duke rasped. "Where'm I?"

  
He remembered something, something about a woman, something about the Troubles—vaguely, but it seemed to be slipping away from him rapidly, and it faded from his memory.

  
"We got your heart started again after—"Nathan began. "You've been in the hospital ever since. Duke, I'm so sorry I—" he broke off as Julia and Gloria came into the room, followed closely by Dwight.

  
Nathan turned to look at them, his face beaming.

  
"He's awake," he said.

  
Gloria bent down, kissing Duke's forehead, and caressed his face.

  
"Hello there, Sleeping Beauty," she grinned.

  
"Hey buddy," Dwight beamed. "Welcome back."

  
"Did we—win?" Duke asked.

  
"Yeah," Nathan answered warmly. "We won, Duke. Troubles are gone for good."

  
"Yay us," Duke breathed, getting a chuckle from the room. He tried to sit up, but Gloria and Julia gently eased him back down into his pillow.

  
"Easy there, tiger," Gloria admonished kindly.

  
Duke's eyes darted around the room.

  
"Where's…Audrey?"

  
Nathan's smile slipped.

  
"She left with Vince and Croatoan," he told him. "A lot's happened in the last four months."

  
"Four months?" Duke got out. "It didn't feel that long."

  
"Well, it was," Nathan said. He looked ten years younger, and he squeezed Duke's pale fingers affectionately. "We got a lot to talk about, me and you," he told him.

  
"Mm," Duke answered faintly, closing his eyes.

  
"He needs rest," Julia told them firmly.

  
"He's been asleep for the last four months," Dwight protested.

  
"And we don't want him to relapse for another four," she retorted. "It's going to take some time to get him back on his feet," she told them, and smiled faintly. "But I think we have enough willing hands to help him along."

  
"You bet," Nathan beamed.

* * *

  
After another two weeks, Duke was released from the hospital, and agreed to stay in Gloria's guesthouse while he recovered. Some things Duke could recall with perfect clarity; others, he was either foggy or could not remember at all.

  
He was beginning to recover his strength, and was now able to walk short distances; although the weather of late had been quite snowy, preventing the walks, and he'd had to confine himself to the treadmill, which he hated.

  
"I don't need you falling over, 'cause I might fall too, and this old broad's too old to be trying to pick both of us up," Gloria would chide him affectionately. She glanced at him. "What's the matter, Kitten?"

"Nothing," Duke murmured.

"Something is," she replied. "You've got that faraway look in your eyes again."

  
"Gloria--do you ever feel like there's some--gap--in what happened between what happened in the police station and now?" Duke questioned.

  
Gloria sat down at the kitchen table, taking his hand in hers.

  
"A _lot_ of stuff happened," Gloria said. "But when the Troubles ended kiddo, it's just that--they _ended_. That wouldn't have been possible if you hadn't done what you did."

  
"I just feel like-- _something_ happened, but none of us can remember it," Duke confessed. "Like that day on the beach when James Cogan died."

  
"Honey, you were comatose for four months. You were clinically dead for nearly ten minutes--I still don't know how Nathan managed to get you going again, but he did," Gloria told him. "Your brains are still kind of scrambled around right now, so your memory's going to be kinda hinky--hell, it might always be that way. But nothing's happened. We're all safe now, including you."

  
She patted his hand, and glanced out towards the driveway.

  
"Looks like your new therapist is here," she said. "Good thing too--I think you've worn my back out helping you up and down on your feet," she teased. "I'm only kidding," she added, seeing Duke's guilty expression. "But it is time to turn you over to a professional so you can get back to your own life."

  
There was a knock at the door, and Gloria opened it, revealing a dark-haired, dark-eyed petite girl.

  
"Are you Dr. Verrano?" she questioned.

  
"Yeah."

  
"I'm Jennifer Mason--I'm the physical therapist Dr. Carr sent over for Mr. Crocker."

  
"Nice to meet you," Gloria said, shaking hands. "There's your patient there," she gestured at Duke.

  
Duke gazed at her. He knew he'd seen her before, somewhere, but he couldn't recall it.

  
"Mr.--Crocker?" she asked, going towards him. "I'm Jennifer Mason, your therapist."

  
"Hi," Duke got out, unable to take his eyes off her. "Just call me Duke though, okay?"

  
She smiled, and again Duke felt like he _knew_ her from somewhere, he just couldn't recall where. Funny thing was, he had the impression that she was thinking the exact same thing.

  
"You two know each other?" Gloria asked.

  
"No," they chorused, and chuckled together. "But now that you mention it, I am kind of having a weird sense of deja-vu," Jennifer said.

  
"Yeah, me too," Duke replied gently, gazing at her.

  
"Well, we're not going to get you back on your feet just sitting here," she said brightly. "Shall we get started?"

  
"Let's," Duke beamed. "Hey--isn't Nate supposed to be joining us for lunch?" he asked Gloria.

  
"Supposed to be," Gloria replied.

* * *

  
On the outskirts of Haven, Nathan approached a little red sedan, parked on the side of the road. He went over to the driver's side of the car, and bent down.

  
"Need some help?" he asked.

  
The woman behind the wheel turned her head, and Nathan felt his heart stop for a moment.

 

" _Parker_?" he choked.

 

"I think I _broke_ her more than I parked her," the woman laughed.

  
_No, it can't be_ , he thought, hoping against hope that he wasn't dreaming, that it could be a reality. He then noticed an infant boy in a car seat.

  
"I-I'm Nathan. Wuornos, Chief--Chief of Police," Nathan got out.

  
"I'm Paige Harrison," she said. "That's James," she smiled at the infant.

  
"James," Nathan managed.

  
He tore himself away from staring at her, and fiddled with the hood, quickly realizing that he wasn't going to be able to do a repair on the car.

  
He paused a moment, his eyes closed against the tears forming behind them, hoping she didn't see them and think he was some crazy person. Her hair was different, the name was different, but she was _real,_ she was there.

  
He came back around to her side of the car.

  
"Do you like pancakes?" he asked.

  
"Yeah, I love pancakes," she smiled.

"I know a great place to get some," he said, and then remembered. "Or if--I know it's a strange request, but--I promised to have lunch with an old friend who's been recovering from an--accident. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you came along as well," he finished, hating himself for babbling. "His name's Duke--Duke Crocker."

"Duke? That's a funny name," Paige chuckled. "But sure--I'd like to meet your friend Duke."

"And I'm certain he'd like to meet you," Nathan smiled.

* * *

 

In the Armory, Xeria was speaking with Vince and Croatoan, who was marveling at her, while Vince seemed slightly smitten with her otherworldly beauty.

"Feel honored, Vincent," Croatoan told him. "This is a Saluitian," he gestured to Xeria. "They're a highly advanced civilization--even more so than my old world."

"How so?" Vince questioned, more to Xeria than Croatoan.

"I'll put it to you this way--my old world would be the Talking Monkeys, whereas yours--" he pursed his lips, thinking--"would be more talking protozoans."

"Back to the subject at hand," Vince growled, annoyed with Croatoan. "However did you rescue Duke?  Also, why remove their memories?" Vince questioned Xeria. "And how did you restore Jennifer?" He frowned at himself. "I'm sorry, I realize I must sound annoying."

Xeria beamed gently. "I see where your young friend gets his inquisitiveness from," she chuckled. "In answer to your query about Miss Mason, we rescued her--essence--from he Void. She wished to return--but she didn't want them haunted by what had happened to her--particularly Duke," she continued. "So she asked me to expunge her from their memories. We could not entirely delete her memory from him--but while he does not remember her, nor she him, they feel--that strange pull between them."

  
"They remember love," Vince replied.

  
"Love does not seem to be something that can be erased," Xeria explained. "It is a complex emotion that we are still attempting to understand in our realm."

  
"Humans have been trying to understand love since we could walk upright," Vince answered, and he smiled slightly. He extended his arm to Xeria. "Perhaps we can try to figure it out together."

  
"Perhaps," Xeria replied.

 

* * *

  
_So there you have it. Weird, but stranger things have happened. This is Haven, after all._

 

_**END** _


End file.
